Dissent Rising
by KelliLeanne
Summary: Set eight years after RoTS, young Princess Leia's first visit to Coruscant is marred by political intrigue and a terrorist threat. Complete
1. Prologue

Title: "Dissent Rising"  
Author: KelliLB  
Timeframe: Eight years after RoTS Characters: Leia Organa, Bail Organa, Sabé, Darth Vader, Tarkin Genre: Drama Keywords: Summary: Eight year old Princess Leia's first trip to Coruscant is marred by a terrorist incident and a shocking discovery.  
Disclaimer: I own nothing, Lucas owns everything; I'm just playing with his creations. I promise I'll put them back where they belong when I'm finished.

Note: I am delving into the genre of drama. My previous Star Wars fics have been vignettes, but I'm going to try my hand at writing a full drama.

**_Prologue:_**

The galaxy was finally at peace. After the brutal war between the separatists that left billions dead and many planets devastated war zones; another day was dawning. The war weary inhabitants of the galaxy were finally beginning to pick up the pieces and begin to put their lives back together. Eight years have passed since the defeat of the separatists, and it was an exciting time of peace and prosperity.

Many citizens gave all the credit to one man, Emperor Palpatine. It was him that stood up to the corrupt politicians of the Republic. It was him that exposed the Jedi for what they were; unelected, power hungry wizards who were plotting to take over. While it took many a long time to accept that the so called "heroes" of the Republic were plotting behind their backs; over time most accepted the fact that they had been blinded. They were thankful that Palpatine could resist the Jedi's unnatural powers and see them for what they were.

The citizens of the former Republic were surprised when Palpatine announced that the only government that they and their ancestors had ever known was being re-organized into an empire. Many had misgivings about the change. What about democracy? What about the Senate? The new emperor allayed the fears of the worried citizens by ensuring that, while the Emperor and the Moffs will be given more direct control of the government, the Senate will still be a "vital elected office in which all voices will be heard." They were not exactly sure what that meant and what power the Senate actually had, but the new Emperor's soothing words had calmed most fears.

The citizens who were still worried about the incredible amount of power in, essentially, unelected hands were told by their friends and family not to worry. "It is Palpatine who is leading us," they would say, "he would never appoint corrupt governors, he's looking out for our best interests." The reassurances worked on most; for some they did not.

Those people had heard the whispers; whispers about the actions of some of the Moffs on the non-core worlds. If you talked to the right people, they could tell you stories of the empire subjugating certain species. The Wookees on Kashyyyk were a prime example. Many underworld spacers and smugglers who were certainly not enamored by the Empire could tell many stories of the horrors that they had seen these regional governors commit. However, most of those who had seen these things knew to keep their mouths shut. Spreading "dissent" was considered treason and it was a good way for their not so legal activities to be brought to the harsh light of day.

Spreading dissention was one of the major unpardonable sins in this new empire. HoloNet news was under control of the government even before the Republic was re-organized. After the Empire was formed, the underground news organizations were ruthlessly hunted down. The leaders of these organizations faced time in prison or worse. Darth Vader, the Emperor's loyal second in command, had personally "brought to justice" hundreds of underground journalists by any means necessary. Most of Lord Vader's actions were secret but a few of them were allowed to leak out to the general public.

For the most part, Emperor Palpatine was respected and admired; Vader was feared. It was quickly deduced by the citizens of the Empire that Lord Vader was the main enforcer of the Emperor's grand vision. Even though the average public had no idea who he really was and where he came from, he was almost instantly feared. His nightmarish armor and mask was the source of sleepless nights for many children. Parents all over the galaxy had spent a lot of time reassuring their young that Lord Vader was not hiding in their closet or under their bed.

Back on Coruscant, the Senate, who had overwhelmingly voted in favor of the resolution that disbanded the Republic, had adjusted quickly to the change. They were, for the most part, interested only in fighting for whatever scraps of power and influence that Palpatine deemed to throw to them. They had felt the political winds beginning to shift, and being good political survivors, they had shifted along with them.

A small minority of Senators were rumored to be not so content with blindly following the Emperor down the path that he had so carefully laid. It was whispered that these senators had begun to quietly organize. Of course, these were just rumors and whispers; there was no proof yet of duplicity on the part of any senator.

Many of these rumors surrounded the senator from Alderaan. Before the Empire had been formed, he had been a critic of the then Chancellor Palpatine's many amendments to the Republic constitution. He had also been known to be close with influential members of the Jedi order before they had been decreed treasonous. However, Bail Organa seemed to support the Emperor and he had not made public any opposition to the continuation of the search for remaining members of the Jedi Order.

The only change in Senator Organa's behavior was that he spent less time on Coruscant than before. When asked about the change, Bail Organa usually smiled and said that he just wanted to spend more time with his family. There were times though when he could not avoid a trip to Coruscant. This week was the beginnings of the Empire Day festivities. This celebration marked the eighth standard year of the Emperor's reign. Like every Empire Day before it, all senators and other representatives of the thousands of worlds in the Empire were expected to attend the celebration on Coruscant.

For the Organas, this year was different than before. Bail Organa was bringing his eight year old daughter Leia to Coruscant for the first time. She had pleaded for the last four years to go and finally Bail had allowed it. His wife, Breha, was ill and could not make it to represent to royal court of Alderaan. It had fallen on Princess Leia to fill in for her mother. Her presence there was only ceremonial, but that did not diminish the young girl's enthusiasm.

To say that her parents had misgivings about Leia going to Coruscant was an understatement. After much closed door debate and hand wringing, it was decided that it was time for the Princess to assume a more public roll. She was, after all, heir to the throne of Alderaan; she could not be hidden from the galaxy forever. With a heavy heart her mother had Leia packed for her week long trip to the capitol.


	2. Chapter 1

**_Chapter 1:_**

Princess Leia could barely contain her excitement. "How long until we reach the capitol?"

Bail Organa smiled down at his eight year old daughter; "About fifteen minutes less than the last time you asked." Despite his many objections to Leia attending Empire Day festivities, a part of him was glad that she was along. He always missed his family very much when he went to the capitol.

Leia frowned slightly, "we'd get there sooner if you would tell Captain Antilles to calculate a better hyperspace route. Why are we going the long way?"

The Senator was surprised. "What do you know about hyperspace routes?" Bail had his daughter tutored in many things: diplomacy, history, art, and other subjects that fit her station but he knew he or his wife had never authorized tutoring in starship operations.

Leia grinned sheepishly, "I was talking to Captain Antilles earlier. I asked him about how the ship works and how routes are calculated." The Princess's voice became more excited and she began to speak rapidly. "It was so much fun learning about this ship. I asked if I could fly for a few minutes but he said I couldn't because I don't know how. Oh father, I want to learn how to fly! Just imagine, being able to fly anywhere and see all the planets. Please father, will you let me learn to fly? I'm sure Captain Antilles would teach me."

Bail flinched at his daughter's desire to learn to fly. He was glad that in her excitement Leia had not noticed it. For a fraction of a second an unwanted image filled his mind; an image of a brash, young Jedi pilot who was known for his daredevil maneuvers in a Starfighter. Bail quickly banished the thought. He hated it when his mind would connect his precious daughter to the traitorous Jedi turned Imperial enforcer. "No Leia, you don't need to learn to fly!" In his haste to change the subject, Bail answered more harshly than he intended.

The Princess was surprised by her father's reaction. Her parents were not prone to emotional outbursts. Years of diplomatic training had helped them learn to remain calm in all situations; a necessity in politics. Leia had always admired her parents because of this, especially her father. He was known for his level head. Leia knew that it was a trait that her parents were trying to teach her. Leia had a temper that could be very strong if given the right motivation. Slowly, her parent's teachings had begun to sink in and the Princess was less prone to anger than she was a few years ago. However, her temper still flared up on occasion.

Even though her parents were usually calm, certain subjects seemed to produce a quick emotional reaction in them. Every time she would mention wanting to learn how to fly a ship was one of those subjects. "I'm sorry father; I just thought it would be fun."

Bail stooped down to his daughter's level and smiled. "I'm sorry Leia. I shouldn't have been so harsh." He then gave her a warm hug. "You just have so many other subjects. I don't think that piloting is as important as the others."

Leia could tell by his tone that the discussion was over for now. She still wanted to learn but she knew that it would not be soon. The Princess decided to ask again in a few months; maybe then her parents would be more open to the idea. To alleviate the sudden tension, she thought it would be best to change the subject. "What time will it be on Imperial Center when we land?"

This time, Leia did notice Bail's sharp intake of air and his troubled expression. "Coruscant Leia, the planet is called Coruscant." He quickly schooled his features. "The answer to your question is that it will be around 0800 local time when we arrive at the Senate docking platform."

The Princess knew better than to call Coruscant by the other name, but sometimes she would forget. The name of the capitol had not officially changed to Imperial Center but since the Emperor had begun to call it that six years ago, HoloNet News and the rest of the Imperial media had switched as well. The change had been gradual; but many people, especially children, now called the former Republic capitol of Coruscant, Imperial Center.

"What will we do when we land?" The Princess was eager to see the large city planet. Coming from a planet with much in the way of wildlife and nature, visiting a planet devoid of those things was fascinating to the young girl. It was hard for her to imagine a planet with no grass, no mountains, and no water.

Bail was happy that his daughter seemed to have changed the previous subjects. The idea of his precious daughter flying a ship and her calling Coruscant " Imperial Center" was very disturbing. "Well, we're going to land on the Senate platform. We will then go to the Alderaanian consulate. I have a few things I have to do, but I have arranged for someone to take you on a tour of some of the sites on Coruscant."

Leia was disappointed that her father could not go with her but she knew his work was very important. "Where will I be taken? What will I see?"

Bail was pleased to see his daughter's enthusiasm. "Oh, many places. The Senate building, some museums, things like that."

Suddenly the ship came out of hyperspace. This allowed the young Princess her first view of the capitol. It was even more amazing than she had imagined. An entire planet covered for thousands of years with nothing but city. As the ship was coming in closer to the Senate platform, the view was breathtaking. As they were about to land on the platform, Leia spotted a very interesting building nearby and pointed to it. "Father, what is that?"

Bail followed his daughter's gaze, and to his horror, realized she was pointing to the Jedi Temple, the old Jedi Temple. "Oh, that's just an old temple of some sort. It's not used anymore."

Leia was fascinated by the sight. The building was unlike anything nearby. She could not understand why she liked it so much. It was not the tallest building, or the shiniest, but it was so unusual. She could not take her eyes off of it. "Why is it not used anymore? It's beautiful. I would think someone would want it."

The senator could not tell her the truth. The truth was that the Jedi Temple was not allowed to be touched by order of the Emperor. Bail speculated that Palpatine wanted to keep it as a personal monument to his total victory over the Jedi order. His office was situated so that he could look down from his window to gloat over his personal triumph any time he wanted to. Bail did not want to see it torn down, but he did not like the idea of it being used as one more monument to the destruction of democracy. "I don't know dear. It's just an old temple, it's nothing important."

Leia could almost feel her father's discomfort. For some reason, she always knew when he was lying. "Can I go see it later?"

Bail wished that the ship would hurry and land so his infinitely curious daughter would get her mind off this subject. "No, it's been sealed."

Mercifully, the ship finally landed on the docking platform. Bail Organa, his daughter, and the rest of the Alderaanian delegation filed out onto the platform. Before they got off the ship, Bail gave his daughter more instruction. "Remember, there will be some HoloNet journalists there. Keep your head held high, smile, and let me answer all the questions unless I tell you otherwise." After a quick hug, father and daughter walked out to the platform. Leia was very excited to begin this new adventure.


	3. Chapter 2

_Author Note: The quote near the end from Padmé is from Mathew Stover's Revenge of the Sith Novel.  
_

**_Chapter 2:_**

Leia tried not to stare when she exited the ship. If she stared, she feared that she would look unsophisticated. She was the High Princess of Alderaan, and it would not look good to look like a wide eyed child. It was not her first public appearance ever; but it was her first public appearance off her home planet. It was completely different; this was the capitol of the Galactic Empire.

Leia tried to remember the instructions her mother had given her before she left: _"You must stand strong and be confident. You are a princess at all times, act accordingly. Remember, you do not just represent yourself; you represent your entire world. You will always carry Alderaan in your heart no matter where life's path takes you." _

The Princess was happy her father was there. He was always a source of unwavering strength. She tried to emulate his confident bearing as they strode toward the group of HoloNet reporters that had gathered. Since Leia was so young, her coming to Coruscant to represent the royal family of Alderaan had caused a minor stir. It was not just the Princess who had caused the press attention; many rumors surrounded Bail Organa himself. No proof existed of any plotting on Bail's part against the Emperor but that did not stop many journalists from trying to dig up some.

Before father and daughter stopped before the reporters, Bail squeezed Leia's hand one last time and smiled down at her in an attempt to calm his nervous daughter. Right before Leia's very eyes, Bail changed from her loving and protective father the master politician that he was. "Thank you everyone for coming. I and the Princess are glad to be on Coruscant."

Leia was fascinated. During public appearances on Alderaan, her father usually left the public speaking to her mother Breha, the Queen. As the Prince Consort, Bail's public role on Alderaan was to escort his queen and be beside her at royal appearances. However, Coruscant was Bail's arena. He served as senator representing Alderaan, and it was here that he made speeches and answered reporter's questions.

She was so proud of her father's strength. He handled the crowd of reporters easily. The Princess was glad that he was going to do most of the talking. She was trying hard to fight the urge to run away. Leia knew that she was going to have to learn how to deal with the public. She knew that she was heir to the throne; public life was something she was going to have to get used to. Leia resolved to learn what she could from her father this trip.

The questions the reporters were asking were about things that the Princess had little to no knowledge of. They were asking about Senate resolutions, bills, and things concerning the Emperor that Leia was unfamiliar with. The young Princess decided that she would later learn about those issues. She hated not knowing about something.

Bail was glad that the reporter's questions were fairly light this time. He suspected that they were more interested in his daughter's arrival to Coruscant. The senator knew that the press, especially the Entertainment and Lifestyle press, loved a cute precocious princess. Bail was about to switch the line of questioning from his work in the Senate and allow a few questions for Leia when a young reporter from a small HoloNet channel based on Corelia raised her hand.

Bail motioned to the reporter to ask her question. "Senator Organa, I was wondering if you could comment on the group known as the 'Soldiers of the Republic' and their recent threats concerning Empire Day?"

The senator was momentarily thrown by the question. "Soldiers of the Republic" was another in the long line of small groups that opposed the Empire. Almost all of these groups had different goals. One group called for the Empire to be replaced by an Oligarchy of rulers; one for each governed sectors. Another group wanted to dissolve the Empire completely and have each planet govern themselves with very little outside influence. "Soldiers of the Republic" had called for the reinstatement of the Republic, but with completely new Senators. They felt that all the current Senators in the Galactic Empire were traitors and should be lined up and shot right next to Emperor Palpatine.

Bail knew that these groups posed no real threat to the Empire because of their different goals. These groups hated Palpatine but they fought each other more than they fought the Empire. The senator knew that this division only strengthened the Emperor. He knew that the key to defeating the Empire was unity and there was none at this moment.

Lately these groups had not made many comments concerning the Emperor; mainly they focused on releasing scathing comments against rival groups. This was the reason why Bail was surprised that one group had made a threat. "I'm sorry; I must be out of the loop. Could you please enlighten me?"

The reporter was clearly pleased to have caught a public official off guard. "Yes, the group made an announcement just today. Let me read it to you: 'This Empire Day spectacle is shameful. Must we watch while Palpatine and his puppets in the, so called, Senate celebrate the destruction of democracy? The public cheers while more of their freedoms are taken away every day. As long as they have food to eat and a comfortable bed to sleep in, the core world citizens are content to ignore atrocity after atrocity. We must not let this continue; we will shake you from your complacency. Blood will be spilled. We vow that this will be an Empire Day long remembered.'"

The senator suddenly felt a wave of nausea. Threatening civilians was a new trick for this group. Bail knew that if this group succeeded in any sort of attack that it would give the Emperor all the excuse he would need to sink his jaws even deeper into the fabric of the galaxy. New laws would be enacted eroding even more freedoms in the name of security.

Bail was afraid for his daughter as well. He kicked himself mentally for bringing her to an unsafe situation. He knew she would be attending many ceremonies and celebrations; all prime targets for a terrorist attack. He debated whether to immediately get back in the ship and take Leia home, but he knew that it would be impractical. Bail decided to arrange for more security and to curtail a few of Leia's public appearances.

Knowing that the reporter was still waiting for something from him, the senator quickly formed what he thought would be an appropriate response. "I come from a world that values peace above all things. I do not condone violence, especially against civilians. There are ways to peacefully protest the government. I abhor violence in all forms." Bail knew that his answer was not completely honest. He did abhor violence, but he knew that peaceful protest of Palpatine's Empire was becoming more and more difficult, if not impossible. New laws against sedition had made most forms of protest treason.

The senator had had enough of questions. He did not want to answer any more about the subject but the reporter was persistent. "Senator, you were known to not be a supporter of the Emperor's changes to the constitution while he was Supreme Chancellor of the old Republic. Do you have any sympathy for this group's supposed grievances?"

"I support the Emperor and have spent the last eight years supporting him as a senator." Bail almost choked as he said those words. He had said words to that effect many times in the last eight years and he hated himself even more every time he said them. He tried to remember why he had done it; he had to keep Alderaan and his family safe.

Bail also remembered the last thing a troubled young senator from Naboo asked of him the last time he saw her alive: _"Vote for the Empire. Make Mon Mothma vote for him, too. Be good little Senators. Mind your manners and keep your heads down. And keep doing…all those things we can't talk about. All those things I can't know. Promise me, Bail."_ He had kept his promise, but some days it was easier than others to appear publicly to support what he knew to be evil in its purest form.

"One more question, you were known to be a friend to some in the Jedi order. Were you aware of their planned treason?" The young reporter knew that the question was antagonistic and she did not expect a real answer. She mainly wanted to see the senator's reaction to the question.

Senator Organa was finished with the questions. He knew that the other reporters were waiting to ask Leia a few questions, but he would have to disappoint them. "I was not involved in any treasonous activities. My record proves that." Bail then took a deep breath and forced a smile onto his face. "Thank you very much everyone; we have much to do and no more time for questions." Before anyone could ask anything else, Bail grabbed Leia's hand and they began walking toward the Senate building.

Leia knew her father was upset. He had gone from remarkable calm to very agitated in the span of five minutes. She knew that it was the last reporter's question that changed her father's mood so completely. She hoped no one could see that his hand that was holding her small one was shaking slightly.

The Princess knew that the Empire was a sore subject with her parents. They had not specifically expressed their views to her regarding the Empire, but over time she had picked up that they were not willing supporters. Leia decided that it was not just the Empire business that got her father so upset. His frustration seemed to spike when the reporter mentioned the Jedi. She had heard that they were a group that was considered traitors to Palpatine and the old Republic; but that was the extent of her knowledge. She had not known that her father had been friends with a Jedi. The Princess decided to ask him later who the Jedi really were and why they betrayed the Republic.

For now, the Princess was happy that she had gotten out of answering the reporters' questions. She could not wait to be able to explore more of this strange planet. Neither Bail, Leia, or the other reporters noticed a thin, severe looking man in an Imperial Moff's uniform watching from a distance. They did not also see the amused smirk on his gaunt face.


	4. Chapter 3

**_Chapter 3:_**

Moff Wilhuff Tarkin looked out onto the great city as his shuttle came in to land. The official Empire day was in two days time, but already the preparations for the celebration were already taking place. Holo banners with images of the Emperor were everywhere. The world formerly known as Coruscant truly looked like the grand Imperial capitol that it was.

The governor was glad to be back for a few days. While overseeing the construction of the Emperor's secret project was satisfying work, he was looking forward to being among the honored dignitaries. Tarkin knew that it would be many years before he would get the recognition he truly deserved for constructing the massive battle station. The governor would patiently wait for the day when his true work would be rewarded, but it was nice to get some small recognition for the duties that were not classified.

Tarkin loved Imperial Center. Once the capitol of the corrupt Galactic Republic; in just a few short years the Emperor had transformed it into the ultimate manifestation of Imperial power. Tarkin was amazed how quickly the massive population of the capitol had supported the new Empire. He had not been surprised by the Senate's quick support of Palpatine; he knew that most politicians would gladly sell their own mothers to Kessel if it meant they could retain their cushy seats in the Senate and their luxury apartments in Republica 500. Political survival at all costs was something Tarkin completely understood.

What amazed him was how quickly the Emperor had changed the minds of the everyday populace. Even on some non-core worlds, sentiment changed drastically against the Republic. So quickly, in fact, that Tarkin briefly wondered if the rumors which circulated among the Moffs of the Emperor's special powers were true.

Of course there were dissidents, most of them were non-humans and Republic idealists who made accusations against the Emperor and the Moff Council on a daily basis. Tarkin knew that there would be no true order unless these malcontents are brought under control.

The only complaint that Tarkin had against the Emperor was that he did not seem as concerned as he should be about these dissident groups. It was treason to speak of his doubts publicly, but he inwardly wondered why the Emperor did not pass more laws against spreading dissent. Many laws had already been passed but the governor felt that they did not go far enough.

The shuttle finally landed and the governor exited onto the massive Senate platform. When an Moff arrived on Imperial Center, law required that he had to check in with the Imperial Senate and officially submit a detailed written report of what was happening in his sector of control. It was the closest thing to checks and balances that existed between the Senate and the Moff Council. Most Moffs hated doing this and Tarkin was no exception. He knew the real power in the Empire did not exist in the Senate chambers. The governor longed for the day when the last vestiges of democracy would finally be swept away, but until that day, he had to follow procedure.

As he neared one of the entrances, Tarkin noticed the press gathered around Senator Organa and a young girl that he assumed was Organa's daughter. The governor knew the senator was not loyal. Rumors and a few questionable documents intercepted from the Alderaanian consulate had kept Organa on the Empire's list of watched beings. Officially, the Empire had no real evidence of treasonous activity on the part of the senator, but Tarkin knew that it would be just a matter of time before Organa's treason would be revealed.

The governor had watched the senator from Alderaan at press conferences such as this on a few occasions. The senator certainly knew how to say the right words, he was a master politician after all. There were times though, times when the senator's composure would falter for a few brief seconds and his mask would fall. During those times, it was obvious to Tarkin that Organa did not believe the words he was speaking.

The governor was about to move on when he heard one reporter's final question: "You were known to be a friend to some in the Jedi order. Were you aware of their planned treason?" Tarkin could not help but smile when he saw Organa's reaction. Before, he was just slightly irritated, but the mention of the Jedi made the famously calm Senator from the pacifist planet really angry. Of course, the display of anger was brief and Tarkin wondered if anyone else caught it; but for a few brief seconds, the governor had seen fire in Organa's eyes.

Tarkin watched as the senator formulated a quick answer to the question, grabbed his daughter's hand, and hurried toward the Senate entrance. The governor decided that he would look into Organa's former Jedi connections. He knew that it was not his job to seek out traitors within the Imperial Senate, but Tarkin was not going to let this opportunity go to waste. As long as he was on Imperial Center, he decided to make use of his time here. Exposing this influential senator would go a long way in convincing the Emperor to add more territory to the governor's sphere of influence.

After reluctantly paying his respects to the Senate, Tarkin made his way toward his office in Imperial Command. All members of the Moff Council had offices on Imperial Center. Most of them were hardly used, but were available whenever needed.

As the governor entered, he looked around at the room that was too small and certainly not grand enough for his liking. Tarkin sighed in annoyance; he would have to wait for the credit that he deserved. Tarkin dreamed of the day when his efforts would be rewarded. He was certain, at the very least, a grand monument would be constructed in his honor. Until the battle station was complete, however, he would have to be content with gaining scraps of notoriety whenever he could.

Tarkin scanned his numerous messages from various corners of the Empire. He was pleased to hear that the operation on Kashyyyk was coming along nicely. Finally, the construction force was getting large enough to make a dent in the massive project. He knew more laborers would be needed in the future. Tarkin thought of several possible non-human worlds on which workers could be quickly acquired whenever needed.

Another message got the governor's attention. The report detailed a threat made against the Empire Day celebration by a group known as "Soldiers of the Republic." While he scoffed at the idea that this rag tag group of dissidents could make their way through several layers of Imperial security to carry out this threat, Tarkin wondered why this threat was not getting more official attention. There was not even an official security alert posted.

The governor was certain that this threat was being dealt with in some fashion, maybe not officially. Tarkin tried to let the matter rest in his mind but he found that he could not let it go. He could not shake the feeling that something larger was going on. The governor's survival instincts were telling him to stay out of whatever the Emperor was planning but Tarkin's ambition was telling him to get further involved. A small voice that he rarely listened to anymore told him it did not matter what he did, everyone in the Empire were just disposable pawns in the Emperor's great game.

After much internal debate, Tarkin decided to focus on exposing Organa and not on whatever was going on with "Soldiers of the Republic." It seemed the safest course and the one most likely to gain the governor the most in the long run. Tarkin forced all doubts out of his mind as he focused on his task ahead, exposing the traitor Organa and any of his accomplices within the Senate.


	5. Chapter 4

**_Chapter 4:_**

Bail Organa was livid as he quickly strode through the massive Senate complex toward the Alderaanian consulate. He knew he should not have been surprised by the questions; he had been investigated constantly since before the formation of the Empire. He hated when the Jedi were mentioned in the same breath as the words "treason" or "betrayal." Bail only knew of one Jedi that fit those descriptions.

The senator knew the truth; the truth the galaxy was unable or unwilling to understand. The truth was that the Jedi were few of the only ones who were loyal to the Republic till the bitter end; and that ending was so bitter. The Jedi were the true heroes who risked their lives daily fighting a war that was engineered by the very man who was the subject of this farce of a celebration. Bail wondered if "man" was a suitable definition for what the Emperor was. Creature, thing, monster—those seemed to be more accurate descriptions; but even those words seemed inadequate to describe what Palpatine was.

Sometimes Bail wondered it would have been better for him not to know what truly ruled the galaxy. He would still work just as hard to defeat the Emperor if he did not know his true nature. Still, knowing what he knew about the Emperor and Lord Vader made Bail more mindful. He knew that the other senators in the organization thought he was too cautious and was working too slowly for their taste. They were not aware of the knowledge that Bail and a just a few others were burdened with.

The senator believed fully in his heart that the Emperor and Vader could be defeated, but he could not afford to let the others in his organization underestimate the heads of the Empire. Bail suddenly looked down at Leia who was trying her best to keep up with her father's long strides; the cost of underestimating them was too high.

Bail stopped and took a deep breath. He could not afford these raging emotions—not now, not ever. Of all weeks, this was the one where he could not let the mask drop. He had to be Bail Organa, loyal but concerned member of the Imperial Senate. He wondered how long he would have to participate in this deception. If the organization he helped found was successful in restoring the Republic; what kind of man would he be on that day? Somehow, Bail knew he would not be the same person he was at this moment.

"Father, what's wrong?" Leia's concerned voice interrupted the senator's disturbing thoughts. He looked down at the little girl with Padmé's eyes and Skywalker's expressions. Leia looked so much like the combination of her two biological parents that Bail wondered how those who knew either of them very well could not see the resemblance.

Both of Leia's parents were public figures and their faces were well known throughout the galaxy. Padmé was a young queen turned influential senator. Skywalker was known as "The Hero with No Fear" in countless HoloNet news reports. He was the brave Jedi who was the poster boy for the Republic war effort. Of course, all mentions of anything brave done by any Jedi were long expunged from public record.

Bail moved Leia in a small alcove near the consulate block in the senate complex and bent down to her level. "Nothing's wrong dear, I just wish the reporters would have saved some of those questions for another press conference." Bail tried to plaster on a convincing smile.

Leia knew him well enough to see right through it. "Father, something else is wrong; I know it. You didn't get upset until she mentioned the Jedi. Did you actually know Jedi?"

Bail inhaled sharply at the mention, and looked around to see if anyone else was listening. He knew his daughter well enough to know that this question was coming. Leia had an expression on her face of someone trying to solve a complex riddle. He had seen this look on Leia before, and he knew she would not rest until she found the truth. When Leia committed to something; she did it completely. She did nothing half way. It was a trait that Bail had to admit she got from both of her biological parents.

"Leia," Bail began softly. "We really can't talk much about this here, but I did know members of the Jedi order."

The princess was confused. "Weren't they traitors? Didn't they start the war to bring down democracy?"

Bail shook his head. He and Breha had tried to shelter their daughter from Imperial propaganda but she was not completely insolated. "Know this Leia, what the Emperor says and the truth is sometimes two different things. You must never repeat this openly, and I cannot tell you any more; just remember that."

Leia gazed directly at her father. "Will you ever tell me what happened, the whole truth?"

Bail looked into the pleading eyes of his eight-year-old daughter and saw someone who looked much older. He knew he could never tell her the whole truth. He was certain she would eventually find out what happened during the dark days that surrounded the declaration of the Empire and her true origins, but Bail now knew she would never hear it from him. He was not strong enough. "Someday I'll tell you, but not today."

The senator hoped his daughter could not hear the lie in his voice, but when he saw her changed expression, he knew she did. Perception was another trait Leia received from her biological father. Bail straightened to his full height and took his daughter's hand. "We have to move along now; the ambassador is waiting for us."

Leia knew the conversation was finished. As they continued toward the Alderaanian Consulate, she wondered what secret her father was keeping from her. The princess wished that he had not lied to her and told her that he would someday tell of his involvement with the Jedi. A small voice inside her told her to leave it alone, that the truth was something she was not ready for. However, she could not let it rest. The questions that were burning inside of her were too strong to ignore. Leia decided she had to find out more. She hoped her father would not be too upset with her.

* * *

Sabé watched her husband with barely contained amusement. He was pacing the small confines of the Alderaanian consulate's reception hall waiting for Senator Organa's arrival. He was the recently appointed ambassador to Coruscant from Alderaan and wanted to make a good impression. She was glad they were alone at the moment. "Jorran, he's not going to eat you; calm down." Sabé then added with mock seriousness, "I heard he's a vegetarian." 

Despite his nervousness, the ambassador laughed. He stopped pacing to stand in front of his wife. "I know, beloved. I just want Senator Organa to know he can count on me."

Sabé took her husband's hands in her own; a gesture that she hoped would soothe his frazzled nerves. "He was the one who recommended you to the Queen for the position. He wouldn't have done so if he wasn't confident in your abilities."

Jorran smiled and bent down to kiss his beautiful wife that he knew he did not deserve. "Thank you, my love, what would I do without you?"

Sabé gladly accepted Jorran's kiss. "Probably wither and die," she grinned wickedly.

Her husband nodded, "Most likely."

Sabé laughed; happy her husband was beginning to relax. She could understand his unease. It was only four years ago that Jorran Komour had been dragged reluctantly into the Alderaanian political circle. He was a distant cousin of Queen Breha and the youngest child of the Royal Protector of a large region on Alderaan's southern continent. Being the youngest and not heir to the Protectorate, he had freedom to choose a path other than governing and politics. He had done just that until his father and brother's death.

They were returning home from Chandrila when their ship exploded. The Imperial investigators quickly declared the cause to be an engine malfunction. Sabé knew her husband did not believe the official cause. He believed their deaths had something to do with their trip to Chandrila. Whatever the cause, their deaths had made Jorran and Sabé's lives much more complicated. Jorran's older sister took over as Protectorate, and that obligated her husband to take over as a representative in Alderaan's capitol city.

Jorran did not want the job, but he quickly gained a reputation for being honest and trustworthy. Three years into his post at the capitol, his niece had finally come of age and agreed to take over his position as Protectorate representative.

This would have been the end of Jorran's political career, but Bail Organa had asked him to serve as ambassador to Coruscant and he did not want to disappoint the man who had so much faith in his abilities. He agreed, and his entire family moved to the Imperial capitol.

Political life was nothing new to Sabé. Growing up on Naboo, children were identified early for aptitude in certain areas and given strict training. The educational system of Naboo was so extensive and successful that some of the planet's greatest rulers were still in their early teens when they took office.

Sabé started her training as an apprentice legislator but quickly learned she was not suited to the political profession and wanted to find another path. An opportunity arose when she was offered training as a royal handmaiden for the recently elected Queen Amidala.

Even after all the time that had past, thinking about Padmé still nearly brought tears to her eyes. Losing her dear friend had caused an open wound that refused to heal. Sabé was not only a handmaiden; her physical similarities to the young queen had allowed her to take the honored position as decoy. As she served the Queen for her two terms, Sabé became a trusted friend and confidant. When Padmé Amidala became senator, Sabé had the opportunity to continue to serve as a handmaiden but she decided she had had enough of political life. Sabé wanted to retire from official public duties and settle down.

After she left her handmaiden duties, Sabé met Jorran while he was in Theed visiting an artist's colony. Nearly a year later they were married and living on Alderaan. Sabé still remained close friends with Senator Amidala, and visited her many times on Coruscant. She was one of the trusted few who knew of her friend's secret marriage and pregnancy. Padmé did not want to tell her old friend of her pregnancy but the former handmaiden had guessed when she last saw her. The long and flowing dresses she wore did not hide everything.

Sabé remembered how Padmé tearfully confessed how she was secretly married and pregnant. She loved her husband passionately and was excited about the baby but was afraid. The guilt of keeping the huge secret to herself was tearing her friend apart. She never was told who Padmé's husband was; it was something that her friend could not reveal. Sabé was sworn to secrecy and she promised that she would take the secret to her grave if necessary.

It was only one month later that the Republic was reorganized into an Empire and her dear friend was killed. Sabé could not shake the feeling that those two events were somehow related. The former handmaiden was haunted by her decision to leave Padmé's service and go into private life. She loved Jorran and their three children. However, she could not stop thinking that if she had been there, maybe it would have been different; maybe she could have somehow saved her friend.

Sabé tried to pull her mind out of the suddenly dark place. Senator Organa was on his way to meet with Jorran for the first time and she had to support her husband. She had devoted herself to her him and their children. She had to banish all thoughts of regret, it was a useless emotion.

When she heard footsteps on the other side of the door, Sabé squeezed her husband of ten year's hand in one more gesture of support. The door opened and Bail Organa walked in. "Ambassador, I'm so sorry to keep you and your wife waiting. I had to tell my daughter a few things."

Sabé looked beside the senator to a little girl who seemed really familiar. It was almost though she was looking into Padmé's eyes. She had seen Princess Leia in public appearances through HoloNet, but in person she could clearly see a bizarre resemblance. The former handmaiden wanted to gasp but she forced herself to keep her emotions in check. _Calm down Sabé, many girls have brown eyes_. It was not just the color—it was the shape of her eyes and the eyebrows that framed them. She could not believe what she was seeing. _It's just a coincidence._

Sabé realized her husband was speaking and she forced herself to pay attention to the conversation and not the strange girl that just entered the room. "Thank you for the welcome Senator, we just recently arrived on Coruscant ourselves. Let me introduce my wife, Sabé Komour."

Bail frowned slightly for a moment but then recovered. "Welcome Lady Komour. Sabé is an interesting name. You are not from Alderaan originally?"

Sabé answered. "No, I was born on Naboo. I met Jorran after my public service was completed. I have lived on Alderaan ever since we were married."

"That Naboo sense of duty is very strong. How did you serve?" Bail asked.

Sabé was beginning to wonder why he was suddenly so curious. "I was handmaiden to Queen Amidala." She stated proudly.

Bail seemed to grow pale very suddenly. So much that Sabé wondered if it had been her imagination. "Oh, I'm sure that was a great honor."

After hearing his response, Sabé knew it was not her imagination. She heard pure terror in his voice. _Why would Padmé's name cause that reaction?_ Hoping to diffuse the tense atmosphere, Sabé tried to change the subject. "I am pleased to meet you in person, and your daughter." She gave the princess a respectful curtsey, "Welcome Princess, it is wonderful to finally make your acquaintance."

The princess politely returned the gesture; it was obvious to Sabe that Leia had been trained very well in protocol. "Thank you Lady Komour. I am pleased to meet someone from Naboo. I've never been there but I've read that it is a planet like no other." The princess smiled.

_She may have Padmé's eyes, but she certainly doesn't have her smile.__ I need to stop imagining things that aren't there._ _She's not the ghost of Padmé in the form of a girl; I need to stop thinking like this._ The former handmaiden was happy to hear that the princess was interested in her former home world; the planet that she loved but could not return to because of the memories. "It is a planet like no other; hopefully someday you'll visit and see for yourself."

Sabé looked over to Bail Organa; she assumed that he would continue his conversation with her husband. What she found when she looked in his eyes was troubling. He was staring at her with a mixture of what seemed to be panic and annoyance. Sabé wondered what she could have possibly said to have caused such a reaction. The moment lasted for just a few seconds before the senator's politician face returned. He turned to her husband and began discussing several diplomatic issues and scheduled a few meetings with him for in depth discussion.

Sabé tried to pay attention to the conversation but she could not get her mind off of Princess Leia. The girl seemed fascinated by her new experiences in the Imperial capitol, but she was not overwhelmed. Sabé noticed that she was paying careful attention to the conversation between her father and Jorran—determined to glean whatever information she could from them. The princess did not want to look like a little girl. She wanted to appear knowledgeable about galactic events. Sabé knew exactly what she was doing. When Padmé was first elected as Queen, she did not want to appear to be a naive child. She sometimes had to force people to take her seriously.

The senator finally announced that he was going to have to attend to other matters, and Sabé could tell that Jorran was relieved. He was more relaxed than before but she could tell he was still a little intimidated. After the senator and the princess left the reception area, Sabé gave her husband a supportive smile. "You see my love; it wasn't that bad."

Jorran let out a relieved sigh. "No, it seemed to go well. It remains to be seen though; I way still mess everything up and do something idiotic."

Sabé laughed. "Jorran, don't talk like that. You will do a great job, I know it. I wouldn't have married you if you were an idiot."

Finally, Jorran seemed to relax; his nervousness abated. "So, what do you think of our esteemed Senator Organa and our future monarch?"

"He seems like a fair man; and he's very devoted to Alderaan." Sabé added thoughtfully, "I like the princess as well; she doesn't seem enthralled with herself and her position." _Just like Padmé._ Sabé shook her head; determined to rid herself of this connection her mind had formed between her departed friend and the princess. For the sake of her sanity, it was a battle she had to win.


	6. Chapter 5

_**Chapter 5:**_

"Senator Mothma, I just became aware of the situation when I arrived. When was this threat released?" After telling his daughter to wait for him outside, Senator Organa quickly got in touch with his closest ally in the Senate. He wanted more information on the threat against the Empire Day celebration.

Even through the grainy holo, Bail could see that Mon Mothma was distressed. "It was released first thing this morning while you were in route." The senator from Chandrila was considered to be one of the strongest members of what was deemed: the "organization."; a small group of Imperial senators who had been discretely working against the Emperor since the destruction of the Republic.

"This is new for 'Soldiers of the Republic'; they've never threatened civilians before." Bail shook his head. "I don't know what they hope to accomplish."

Mon Mothma carefully contemplated the question. "They hope to be taken seriously, I presume."

"If they actually do what they are threatening, the backlash will be enormous." Bail sighed in frustration.

Mon nodded sadly. "The Emperor will use the opportunity to take more control of the government. Soon, the Senate will hardly have a voice at all."

The senator from Chandrila was visibly shaken, so much that Bail did not want to remind her that what was left of the Senate had no voice—no real power. Bail knew that the Senate only existed to validate the Emperor's control; and to give the illusion of democracy. Bail knew there would come a day when the Emperor would not even bother with the illusion and the Senate would be disbanded. Until then, he vowed, he would do what he could in his position.

Being a senator did have some advantages. Over the last eight years, Bail and the other senators in the organization had used their positions to funnel money to certain "charitable causes", and contacts were being made outside the Empire. Slowly, a rebellion was being formed.

"Senator Mothma, we'll discuss this later, in person." Bail had been given assurances that the holo transmitter in his office was completely secure, but caution born of experience made him unwilling to discuss certain things over HoloNet while he was on Coruscant. This conversation was bordering on dangerous. "I'll see you when you arrive at the Senate Complex."

Surprised at him essentially cutting her off, Mon agreed. "Of course Bail, I'll be there in a couple of hours."

After the transmission was cut, Senator Organa sat in his office thinking about the sharp turn of events. He wished that Leia had never been brought to Coruscant. He was afraid for her. It was not only the threat of a terrorist incident which worried him. He knew that it was unlikely that this group would succeed. Imperial security was very good. _It should be good; we sold our souls for it._

Bail's fears for Leia were much deeper than concern for her physical safety. He looked out of his window onto what once was the Jedi Temple. Bail sometimes wished that he had another office. Seeing the ancient temple, with its spires scorched by long extinguished flames, always gave Bail an oppressive feeling of sadness and regret.

While he did not like doing it, Bail always made a point to look through his window to the Jedi Temple below. He would never forget the brutal murder of his friends by the betrayer, the Emperor's enforcer, the most feared man in the galaxy—Leia's father.

Bail wondered how such a man could father a girl like Leia. She was everything that Vader was not. She was good; he was evil. She radiated light; he was steeped in darkness. She created happiness everywhere she went; he struck fear in the hearts of those unlucky enough to cross his path.

The senator did not know much about the man Vader was before he took his Sith title. Anakin Skywalker was publicly well known, but Bail had not spent much time with him and knew little of what he was like in private. All he knew was that Padmé Amidala loved and married him. Bail wondered what happened to turn the once noble Jedi Knight into such a creature of evil. Maybe the evil was always there within him, waiting for the right moment to break out. Was Anakin Skywalker destined to be the monster he became?

Bail shook his head; he could not think about this now. It did not matter how or why he turned to evil; Darth Vader was the cruel reality he had to face. Bail had to protect the little girl that called him "father" from the dark lord who really was her father. He shuddered to think about what would happen if Leia's identity was discovered. Senator Organa wondered if the Emperor would have her killed or would she be claimed by Lord Vader and brought up with Sith teachings; Bail was not sure which was worse. One would destroy Leia's life; the other would claim her soul.

* * *

Leia was bored. She had been sitting in one of the consulate's private reception areas and waiting for her father to come out of his office for nearly an hour. Her patience was nearing its limits. "_A few communications, that's all, and then we'll do something else. Just wait here and I'll be right out."_

The princess scoffed inwardly at her father's last instructions before he sequestered himself in his office. _How long do a few communications take? It's been forever! _Leia was finding it difficult to focus on something other than her oppressive boredom. She wished that she could be in there with him. The princess was certain that he was discussing Senate business and was a little upset that she was being excluded. _It's not like he's talking about anything important. He's probably talking about budgets or something else just as boring. What's the harm in me hearing that? I just want to learn about what he does; why can't he understand that? _Leia sighed loudly in annoyance,_ It's not fair!_

Leia saw that her impatience was quickly turning into pouting, and she knew her mother would be disappointed if she saw her behavior. She did not even want to think about her aunts' reaction. The princess would be subjected to a long lecture by her mother's sisters--the self-professed masters of royal etiquette.

In an attempt to get her mind off of her growing frustration, Leia thought about the Empire Day celebrations that she would be attending. She had to admit, she was looking forward to it. The princess had heard about the Coruscant celebration and how exciting it was. All planets within the Empire observed the day, but Coruscant was where the major festivities were held. Alderaan observed Empire day, but it was always a somewhat subdued affair.

Leia knew enough to understand that Alderaan was not the Empire's most loyal planet. Sure, most of the population paid their taxes and did not resist when the Empire began drafting its citizens into the Imperial Navy, but there was tension. When that tension erupted into protests or calls for rebellion, the Queen always appealed to the population to remember the pacifist history of their planet. She would implore them to not to let anger and outrage cloud their judgment and destroy their ideals.

Most Alderaanians did not criticize the Queen for her calls for calm. The Royal Family was loved by most of the citizens, and the Queen was highly admired. If any criticism was made, it was usually made against the Prince Consort—Senator Bail Organa. He was one of the many senators who voted for the resolution which re-organized the Republic into an Empire. Die-hard Republic idealists on Alderaan saw it as a betrayal. In the years since, most of the calls for Senator Organa's replacement had abated; but in some quarters, Bail was still seen as a traitor to democracy.

In bits and pieces of conversations she had gleaned over the years; Leia had picked up the fact that her parents were not supporters of the Empire. She knew that their public support of the Emperor was only for the sake of appearances.

_He's doing this on purpose. He's testing me to see how long I can sit still._ Leia's frustration was growing. She recognized it was not really the fact that she had been left alone for so long that caused her mood. She recalled her conversation with her father in the hallway before they arrived at the consulate. Leia knew her father and mother hid many things from her and it was very annoying. She wished her parents trusted her more.

This feeling was not new to Leia, but the business with the Jedi had caused it to surface. Leia had no idea that her father knew Jedi. She had read the historical accounts and learned that the Jedi were a secretive order of beings with mysterious powers who gained members by taking children from their parents. Near the end of the Clone Wars, the Jedi tried to assassinate Supreme Chancellor Palpatine in a failed attempt to take over the Republic.

The Princess also had access to a few of the remaining historical accounts that were pre-Empire. In those documents, the Jedi were not treated as villains. Those accounts told of heroic Jedi Knights that were the guardians of peace and justice. The two wildly differing accounts confused Leia. Only once, though, did she ask her parents about the Jedi, but she came away from that conversation with more questions than answers. The only thing the princess's parents told her was that someday she would be told more, and to not worry about it right now. Their evasiveness still stung. _I'll find out; I'll find out on my own what they're hiding.  
_

_

* * *

_  
"Be quiet Artoo! There are humans trying to get important work done and you are disturbing them." The protocol droid, designated C3P0, was exasperated. His counterpart, a very quirky astromech droid, had been acting odder than usual today; Threepio was getting rather annoyed by all of Artoo's excitement. Ever since he had found out that Princess Leia was arriving on Coruscant today, the astromech droid had been nearly impossible to be around.

Artoo bleeped back a rude response which should have shocked any self-respecting astromech droid; but unfortunately, behavior such as this was becoming more and more common with these older models. "How dare you! You had better be careful or they will turn you into scrap."

Artoo's reply was a little more subdued this time. Threepio was glad that his counterpart was finally beginning to calm down. The astromech droid had been concerned about the Princess ever since he found out that she was arriving, and had been chattering endlessly about some danger.

Threepio first believed that the danger Artoo was going on about was the terrorist threat, but he seemed more concerned about something else. The protocol droid calmly informed his counterpart that Senator Organa would not have brought the princess to Coruscant if there was great danger and that he should not think that he knew better than humans. Threepio hoped that would be the end of it, but Artoo was notoriously stubborn and would not let the matter drop.

"Artoo, you seem to forget that I am more experienced…"

"Threepio! Artoo!" The protocol droid's lecture was interrupted by the sound of a child's excited voice.

The golden protocol droid turned to the source of the voice and saw a young girl running down the hallway toward them. "Princess Leia! You have arrived." Threepio turned back to Artoo. "You see, there was no reason to be concerned. She is here and undamaged."

The Princess stopped when she reached the droids and frowned. "Concerned? Why was he concerned?"

"I do not know. These astromech droids are notoriously strange. He probably needs a memory wipe, but this droid is quite resistant to that idea." Threepio explained.

Artoo's snorting reply was such that it needed little translation to any human listening. Threepio's response was in proportion. "You have crossed the line! How dare you say that! I have half a mind to send you to maintenance immediately."

Princess Leia's laughter stopped any further confrontation between the droids. "I am so happy to see you two again. The palace hasn't been the same since you were transferred here."

It had been nearly a year since they were re-assigned to the Alderaanian consulate on Coruscant. Before, they had worked in the palace. Leia had always loved being around the two droids and had sometimes included them in her playtime. Threepio remembered one such occasion when the princess was four years old. She insisted on draping the two droids with material from some of the Queen's old gowns and pretended to have a tea party with them. Threepio was happy to serve the Organas in any manner, but that experience was something he was not eager to repeat.

"I speak for me and my counterpart here, we are glad to see you again. Welcome to Coruscant." Threepio stated with the elegance expected of a protocol droid.

The princess grinned. "Thank you, I'm happy to be here."

Artoo began chirping. If it were possible, Threepio would have rolled his eyes in annoyance. "I'm getting to that. You have no understanding of human behavior. First, you must greet them and then go on to other topics."

Princess Leia put out her hand to signal him to stop. "It's fine Threepio. What does he want?"

"My impatient friend here," the protocol droid began, "wanted to wish you a happy naming day. We know it is in three days time, but we also know your family always celebrates it early." It was custom in the Organa household to celebrate the princess's naming day a week early. Her actual naming day always fell during the Empire Day celebration week and it was deemed more convenient to celebrate the week before. In truth, the Princess was still seven years old until three days from now, but her family considered her eight already.

"Thank you, both of you."

Suddenly, the door to Senator Organa's office opened and he strode into the hallway. The protocol droid, who was programmed to read expressions, saw tension in the human's face. Even when the human smiled at his daughter, the tension was still there. Senator Organa seemed nervous about something. "I'm so sorry Leia, that took longer than I thought."

"It's all right. What were you doing?" The princess asked.

"I told you, I had to make a few communications to some fellow senators." The senator's tension increased slightly at the princess's question.

Princess Leia hesitated for a moment. "Was it about 'Soldiers of the Republic'? I heard the reporter ask you something about that."

Threepio noticed that Senator Organa's skin seemed to pale slightly. It was fascinating how a human's skin tone could change so easily. His programming told the protocol droid that a slight change is skin tone and breathing rhythm signaled emotional distress in humans. The question seemed harmless, though.

"Leia, this is neither the time, nor the place, to discuss this." Senator Organa warned while looking around nervously.

"Father, why can't you tell me anything?" The princess pleaded with a slightly raised voice.

Senator Organa's response was quick. "Leia, do what I say."

Thanks to the protocol droid's advanced hearing capabilities, he could hear Princess Leia's heart rate increase. Previous experience told him that an increase in heart rate sometimes indicated anger. In response, Threepio's conflict resolution subroutines initiated. "Princess, it may be best to discuss other matters if Senator Organa does not like this subject."

The protocol droid expected the princess to calm down. After all, his conflict resolution subroutines were state of the art and were designed to calm tense situations. Strangely enough, Threepio heard a greater increase in Princess Leia's heart rate. Humans were just too unpredictable at times.

The two humans stared at each other for a few seconds longer, neither one of them wanted to concede. After a moment, Princess Leia's head bowed slightly. "I'm sorry, Father."

Senator Organa smiled and the remaining tension in his face lessened. "It's all right, Leia. I seem to remember promising you a tour of some of the sights on Coruscant; I have come to make good on that promise."

Leia smiled broadly. "That's great!" The princess then seemed to remember something and her smile lessened. "But you're not going to be able to be there."

Senator Organa bent down to look into his daughter's eyes. "I wish I could go with you. I have a meeting and then there's a Senate session afterward. I'm sorry."

"I know your job is important." Princess Leia was disappointed, but she kept a brave face. "Can Threepio show me around? I would rather be with him and Artoo than someone I don't know."

Senator Organa sighed. Threepio could tell that he was not too enthused with the idea. However, seeing that this was something that the princess really wanted, he relented. "All right, but you can only go to certain places. I will also send security with you."

Leia frowned slightly. She was used to having security around her when she was out in public; but she wished that, just for once, she could have the freedom to explore on her own. "That's fine." The princess's eyes then lit up with an idea. "Can I visit the Senate during the session? I would love to see it happen."

The protocol droid's stress detection subroutines detected a slight increase in Senator Organa's pulse and a change in his breathing. Seeing as how the human's face did not betray any changed emotional state, Threepio wondered if he needed maintenance. The golden droid decided to have the technicians look at some of his programming.

"That sounds like a good idea. The session doesn't begin for another two hours. Threepio will show you to the Alderaanian box." The senator stood to his full height which seemed to tower over Princess Leia. He looked at the protocol droid. "I will provide you with a list of the sights that she is to visit. You are only to take her to those places. Do you understand?"

Threepio nodded emphatically. "Oh yes, I will only take her to the places you want her to go. Some areas of Coruscant can be veryquite dreadful. We will be careful to avoid such places."

"Good, see that you do." The senator turned back to his daughter and gave her a pointed look. "Leia, promise me that you'll behave."

Princess Leia smiled and nodded. "I promise father. I'll see you later." After Senator Organa left the room, she looked at the protocol droid. "So, are you ready Threepio?"

* * *

Bail Organa watched as his daughter left the consulate with the two droids and her security detail. He was not thrilled that she was around Threepio and Artoo. For reasons that Bail did not want to examine very closely, Leia had always been drawn to those two droids and treated them like they were human. Considering the history associated with the droids, Senator Organa did not enjoy seeing them around Leia. If he was honest with himself, Bail would admit that he had the two droids transferred away from the palace just to get them out of his daughter's life. 

Pushing all other thoughts out of his mind, Bail focused on the upcoming meeting with Senator Mothma. He wanted to discuss matters in person that he was not comfortable discussing over HoloNet.

A few minutes later, Bail welcomed the Senator from Chandrila into his office. "Hello Mon, it's been a while since we've met face to face."

Senator Mothma smiled. "It's been far too long; you've been on Alderaan too long."

Bail knew that her comment was not completely in jest; it came from her frustration. She had mentioned several times that she hated it when he was away from Coruscant. When he was gone, she felt like she was shouldering the burden of the rebellion on her own. There were other senators involved, a little over four hundred at the moment. However, most of the four hundred worked independently in their own specific sphere of influence for the sake of security. If one of them got discovered, the entire organization would not come crashing down.

Central power in the rebellion was mainly onin the hands of Bail Organa, Mon Mothma, and a handful of other senators. They were the ones making the majority of the decisions. Very specific protocols were established to contact and give orders to the remaining four hundred rebel senators if needed. It took a while to disseminateinstructions, but it was a tried and true method.

Before the war, a group of two thousand senators signed a document protesting the Supreme Chancellor's actions during the Clone War. Since Palpatine declared himself Emperor, most of those senators had been killed or imprisoned. It was only Organa, Mothma, and the few others' voting in favor of the re-organization of the Republic that saved them from that fate.

"I'm sorry Mon; I'll make an effort to be here more." Bail conceded.

Senator Mothma sighed. "I understand why you don't want to be here, truly I do. You can do the majority of your work from home. I just sometimes feel like I'm fighting the Emperor alone."

"We are all united in this cause, none of us are alone. Knowing that is sometimes the only thing that keeps me going." Senator Organa said firmly. One of his major contributions to the organization was as the almost spiritual leader of the rebellion. His motivation and determination had kept the organization from succumbing to fear and despair when the oppressive shadows of the Emperor and Lord Vader loomed large.

Mon smiled at her colleague then turned and looked out of the window. "I wonder, when the time comes for us to make our stand, how many of them will join us. Will they ever be united by this cause?"

Bail knew that the senator from Chandrila was referring to the ordinary people of the galaxy. Eventually, they will be needed to help fight the Empire and it's massive military. "I believe so; there are rumblings in some quarters. Some of Lord Vader's actions are starting to become known."

Mon shook her head. "It's not enough. The Emperor is not stupid. He is allowing knowledge of Vader's actions to become public to spread fear. It was no accident that his killing of the underground journalists on Onderon became public. It was a warning to all of those who may 'spread dissent', as the Emperor calls it." Senator Mothma turned to face Bail again. "It's a tidy arrangement those two have. If one is not enamored by the Emperor's grand speeches, the fear of that monstrosity will keep them in line."

Senator Organa nodded in agreement. "That is true, for now. I have to have faith that there will be another day. Someday, fear will not keep good people from doing the right thing."

"It's not just fear that's the problem." Senator Mothma returned to her perch by the window and starred out of it. "When I look out there, I see peace and prosperity. On the core worlds, it's easy to forget that we live in a dictatorship. It's easy to forget the price we paid for that peace. The people were war-weary and when Palpatine offered them peace in exchange for loss of freedom, most of those in the Republic took it without hesitating."

Bail walked over next to the window; along with Mon, they watched the skyline of Coruscant. "This is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause."

The senator from Alderaan's voice was so low that Mon Mothma could barely hear him. She turned toward him in confusion. "What do you mean by that?"

Senator Organa shrugged. "Oh nothing, just something an old friend once said."

The two senators were silent for a few moments. Senator Mothma's eyes fell on the Jedi temple. "I would hate to have this view if I were you. From my office, you can't see the temple and I'm very glad of that. I'm not sure if I could stand looking at it day after day.

"It isn't easy, but I look at it to remind myself of the high price that was paid when Palpatine ascended to the throne."

"You know, if we had a Jedi on our side, it would be a great asset." Senator Mothma had suspected that a few Jedi were still alive but in hiding. She also had many reasons to suspect that Senator Organa knew where some could be found.

Bail sighed in annoyance. This was not the first time they had had this conversation. "Senator, I don't know what to tell you."

The first few times this conversation played out, it ended in a screaming match. Not exactly a screaming match, Senator Organa just stood there unmoving while Mon Mothma screamed at him for not telling her what he knew. She knew now that Bail would not reveal what he knew of the Jedi until he was ready. "Bail, you know that you're going to have to tell us someday."

Senator Organa nodded sadly. "Yes, but not today."

With that, the two senators decided to move on to other topics. They discussed the terrorist threat for Empire day and they discussed new ways to funnel government money toward rebellion efforts.

After Senator Mothma left his office, Bail went over the conversation he had with her over the Jedi. He knew where Obi-Wan Kenobi was, on Tatooine, watching over Leia's twin brother. He agreed with the senator from Chandrila, having a Jedi on their side would eventually be a great asset to the rebellion, but he knew that Master Kenobi's mission was very important and he would only call on him at the rebellion's most desperate hour.

* * *

Princess Leia had had enough of museums. She was currently touring the fifth one today. Leia loved learning about history, but this much of it in one day was driving the princess to distraction. She was now visiting the art museum and studying a rather disturbing portrait of Emperor Palpatine. Leia could swear that the eyes followed her everywhere she went. 

"This, Princess Leia, is an exhibit devoted to the reign of Emperor Palpatine and the formation of the Empire." Threepio pointed to a large painting to his left. "This painting is an artist's rendering of the failed assassination of the Emperor by members of the Jedi order."

Princess Leia directed her gaze toward the indicated paining. It was done in the Naboo style of art. The Emperor was shown standing tall in nobility and defiance while the Jedi assassins were painted as wretched and almost beast-like. Leia wondered how the scene really played out. She suspected that one could not get the unvarnished and objective truth from commissioned artwork.

As Threepio continued to explain the various works of art in the exhibit, Leia's eyes were drawn to a sculpture in the back corner of the room. It was a life-sized bust of Darth Vader, the Emperor's right hand man. She walked up close and stared at it. For some reason, the princess could not take her eyes off of it.

Princess Leia had always been a bit fascinated by Lord Vader. She feared him, like every other sensible being in the galaxy, but she also wanted to know more about him. Some people wondered if Vader was even human underneath the mask, but the princess suspected that he was. Emperor Palpatine was borderline anti-alien. All of his advisors, generals, and governors were human. It seemed logical that his second in command would be human as well. Leia wondered what happened to make him have to wear the suit and the mask.

Leia was glad her father was not here at the moment. If he saw her staring at a sculpture of Lord Vader, she knew he would get upset. Every time she asked her parents anything about Vader, they always acted weird about it and changed the subject quickly.

Threepio ambled up to where the princess was standing. "Princess Leia, I do believe we are finished with this museum. There are two hours left in the Senate session. Would you like to watch for a few minutes?"

Leia put all other thoughts out of her mind and grinned excitedly. "That would be great Threepio. Let's go!"

Fifteen minutes later, Leia and the droids arrived at the Alderaanian box of the Imperial Senate. As the security detail waited outside, Leia was shown inside and sat down next to her father in the senate pod. The senator looked over to his daughter and smiled. "Are you having fun today?" He asked softly; the senate was still in session.

Leia did not want to tell her father that she had been bored to tears by the museums, but she did not want to seem unappreciative of her day out. "It's been good; we just came from an art museum."

Bail nodded. "Are you going anywhere else after this?"

"I think Threepio said something about taking me to the Political Museum." Leia was not thrilled by the prospect of another museum, but the princess was fascinated by political history. _It may not be so bad._

Leia looked up to see who was currently speaking. It had to be the thinnest human that she had ever seen. His face was so gaunt that it seemed like his face was collapsing in on itself. "Who is that father?"

Bail grimaced slightly. "That is Moff Tarkin, a regional governor."

The princess frowned in confusion. "He's not a senator. Why is he speaking?"

"When on Coruscant, most governors come to the senate to request more funding." Bailed sighed. "Just listen."

"So, in conclusion, it is imperative that more funding be allocated toward the outer rim. In many star systems, anarchy and crime are ways of life. We must protect our brave Imperial citizens who are bringing civilization to these lawless regions. If you study my proposal, dear senators, you will see that it is not unreasonable. Military funding must be increased in the outer rim; I speak for those whom I protect." Governor Tarkin's speech ended with loud applause of approval.

After he conceded the floor, one pod from a small planet in the mid-rim made its way to the speaking position. The senator objected to Governor Tarkin's motion and accused him of abuse of power. Leia noticed that her father was visibly upset at this turn of events.

The speaking senator's voice amplification was turned off when he began accusing Governor Tarkin of forced labor practices on a couple of planets. As order was being called, Leia looked over at her father to see his head bowed slightly. He was even more upset now.

Control of the speaking platform returned to the Chancellor of the Imperial Senate. "The dissenting opinion is noted, but we will not hurl baseless accusations at the respected governor. The members of the Moff council are personally selected by the His Excellency, the Emperor; they are of the highest moral quality."

Princess Leia was not so certain about the Chancellor's statement. Something about Tarkin made her skin crawl. Her thoughts about the governor were interrupted by the Chancellor's voice. "As I stated, the dissenting opinion is noted. However, since this is a military matter, I must invoke Imperial Edict L54-921. All military funding is to be used at the Emperor's discretion; voting is unnecessary, motion passed." The chancellor then swung his gavel hard, the signal that no more debate was to be heard regarding this matter.

As the senate moved on to other topics, Leia wondered why Governor Tarkin even bothered to give a speech if the motion was to be passed anyway. _If things are going to be passed without debate and voting, why is there a senate? What purpose does it serve?_

The princess's disturbing thoughts were interrupted. "Leia, why don't you and the droids continue with your tour. I think the Political Museum closes in about a couple of hours; you had better hurry if you're going to make it before then."

Princess Leia wanted to stay longer, but she could tell her father was uncomfortable with her being there for some reason. Respecting his wishes, she agreed. "All right Father, I'll see you later."

The princess followed the droids out of the Senate complex onto a pedestrian traffic causeway. With her security detail surrounding them, they made their way to where the speeder had been parked. The ride was short to the Political Museum. As she rode, Leia saw again the building that had so fascinated her when she first arrived to Coruscant. Now, the sun was beginning to set behind it. The effect was breathtaking. "Let's stop a moment."

The driver of the speeder obeyed and parked. "What is the problem, Princess Leia?" Asked Threepio.

"Nothing," smiled Leia. "Threepio, what do you know of that building?" She pointed at the temple.

"That was the Jedi temple. It was the Jedi order's headquarters before they were outlawed." The protocol droid's explanation was cut off by wild chirping from Artoo. "What is the matter with you Artoo? Princess Leia asked a question and I was simply answering it to the best of my knowledge."

The princess was puzzled by the astromech droid's behavior but decided to not examine it further. "I want to see it better. Let's get closer."

The astromech droid chirped and beeped even louder this time and was almost heard over Threepio's protests. "Princess Leia, with all due respect, the Jedi temple is not on the designated list of places that I am allowed to take you. I must respect Senator Organa's wishes on this matter."

Leia knew that she could not override the protocol droid's programming; she would have to find another way to get closer to the temple. Spying a shopping pavilion that was fairly close to the temple, Leia got an idea. "All right Threepio. Can we not go to the Political Museum today? I want to do a little bit of shopping so I can bring something back for Mother."

The protocol droid seemed relieved that the subject of the Jedi temple was closed. He knew that shopping pavilions were on the list of places that he was allowed to take the princess. "That sounds like a great idea, Princess. Your mother would be very pleased to receive a gift from you."

The group made their way to the crowded shopping pavilion. For a while, Princess Leia pretended to be looking around for a gift, but in reality she was waiting for the perfect opportunity. She felt really guilty for what she was about to do; she knew that her security team would scramble looking for her, but this was something she had to do. For reasons she could not explain, Leia had to see the Jedi temple up close.

As they walked from one stall to another, Leia saw her chance to break away. The crowd was heavier and she was close to an alleyway that led to the temple. It was her only chance, if she was going to do it, it would have to be now. Losing herself in the crowd, the princess made a break for the alleyway. As she ran farther from the security detail, she could hear them calling out to her. They were frantically looking for her. Leia tamped down her guilt and fear; she could not allow those emotions to get in the way of her mission.

Finally, the princess reached her goal, the entrance to the Jedi temple. The building was even more beautiful close up than from the air. She wished that she could have seen it when it was being used. She was curious about the order which populated it. She heard that the Jedi were a secretive order orof child kidnappers who secretly plotted to take over the Republic. Somehow, the image of them being monsters did not fit with the building that she was seeing. They could not have been monsters; monsters could not build such an exquisite structure.

Another thing the princess noticed up close, but not from the air, was the scorch marks that marred the temple's surface. Some of the damage looked like fire caused it, but much of the damage near the doorway looked like it was caused by blaster fire. Leia deduced that there must have been a large battle here at one time.

The princess walked closer to the entrance. Her father told her the building had been sealed, so she knew she would not be able to go inside. All she wanted to do was look through the window to take a peek inside.

A couple of steps before she reached the entryway, Leia suddenly felt something hard press into her upper back. The princess looked back in fear to see a stormtrooper holding a rifle to her back. His loud voice broke the silence. "Halt! On the ground now!"


	7. Chapter 6

_**Chapter 6:**_

"You can go on home Sabé." Jorran Komour said with a smile. "I know this can't be too exciting for you." The ambassador had been busy preparing for various meetings and diplomatic functions. After meeting Bail Organa, his wife had stayed with Jorran in his office, helping in any way she could. He loved being with her, but he had noticed that Sabé seemed unusually distracted.

"No, my love, I want to stay and help you. The children are still with their tutors anyway, I want to be with you." Sabé flashed her husband a loving smile that she hoped would convince him of her sincerity. While she did loved helping her husband, Sabé's desire to stay in the consulate had more to do with the puzzle that was Bail Organa's daughter than a desire to work with Jorran today.

Jorran shook his head. "I know that smile, Sabé." He said lovingly. "That is your 'something is really bothering me, but I don't want to talk about it' smile." He got up from his desk and walked over to where his wife was sitting. "What's wrong?" Jorran knelt down to look directly into Sabé's eyes. "Don't tell me it's nothing, because I know you better than that."

Sabé stood quickly and walked a few paces from Jorran. The intensity of his gaze and his loving demeanor was breaking her emotional walls. She did not want to discuss her feelings, but she knew her husband would not let it go.

The former handmaiden turned away from Jorran hoping he would not see the tears that were forming in her eyes. "It's silly Jorran; it's not worth mentioning."

"It's worth it if it's bothering you." Jorran's voice was calm and patient. "Please don't shut me out," he pleaded.

With that, Sabé's reserve crumbled. She turned to her husband and began to weep. Seeing her distress, Jorran quickly embraced his beloved and held her as she cried.

After a few moments, Jorran spoke again. "Sabé, please tell me what's wrong. You were fine until you met Senator Organa. Did he upset you in some way?" Sabé was not easily brought to tears; she was always very strong. Seeing his wife this way was very upsetting. Jorran went over the conversation with the senator in his mind and was hard pressed to remember anything that could have upset Sabé so much. "You can tell me anything, you know that."

Sabé took a deep breath to help return some semblance of emotional control. "Padmé," she finally whispered.

Jorran was confused. He knew that his wife's friend's untimely death was an emotional wound that never had healed. He knew that she was still eat up with guilt that was never hers to bear. However, he had no idea how meeting Bail Organa had stirred up these feelings. "Padmé? I'm afraid I don't understand."

Sabé looked into the eyes of her loving husband. She did not want to tell him, but she knew she owed him the truth. "I told you, it's silly. It wasn't Senator Organa that got me upset, it was Princess Leia."

Jorran broke from the embrace slightly to look into Sabé's eyes. "Princess Leia?"

"I've never seen her in person until today. She looks like Padmé." Sabé knew how this must have sounded to her husband, but she had to tell someone. "She doesn't just look like her; even a couple of her mannerisms are the same."

"Well, Leia is a princess; she was raised as royalty. She would have been taught to carry herself with a regal bearing." Jorran explained. "I can imagine that seeing someone with a few of the same features as Padmé and with royal mannerisms would be upsetting. I'm so sorry, Beloved; I know how hard it must have been for you."

Sabé shook her head. "You don't understand, her eyes, it was like I was looking directly into Padmé's eyes." Sabé crossed the room to a chair and sad down dejectedly.

"I'm so sorry." Jorran repeated, not knowing what to say to comfort his wife.

Sabé could not help but smile at her husband's attempts at making her feel better. She knew that he hated to see her unhappy. Wiping the last few tears that had fallen, Sabé stood quickly and flattened imaginary wrinkles out of her dress. "I told you it was silly.," Sshe said with a forced laugh.

"It wasn't silly," Jorran protested. "I can't imagine what you went through when she died."

"It's been eight years; I need to find some closure badly. If I just knew how she died."

"The official report said that it was an undiagnosed heart condition," Jorran explained. Sabé knew all of this; he wondered why she had to ask.

"Yes, the official report with Emperor Palpatine's seal stamped on it said that," Sabé scoffed. "You, more than anyone else, should know better than to completely trust the 'official report'."

Jorran nodded, thinking about his father and brother's death which was ruled an accident—something he never believed. "What do you think happened?"

"I don't know. I just know that the last time I saw her, a month before her death, she was fine; and the baby she was carrying was fine as well." Part of the official report on Padmé's death had included the fact that she was pregnant. It was a shock to the people of Naboo, and had caused rampant speculation. Sabé wished that her friend's condition had remained a secret to protect her reputation. The people had no idea she was married.

"Sabé, sometimes these things happen and there's nothing anyone could have done to prevent them." Jorran explained gently.

"I know that Jorran. I just find it convenient that the leader of the opposition to Palpatine's actions in the Senate just happens to turn up dead a few days after he crowned himself Emperor." Sabé, like her husband and many others on Alderaan, had never been enamored by the Emperor's grand speeches and soothing promises.

Sabé took a deep breath to help fight back the tears that were threatening to fall. "If only I was there. Maybe I could have…"

"Could have what?" Jorran interrupted. "If she was murdered, you would have probably been murdered too. I'm sorry if this sounds selfish, but I'm glad you were not there to be killed. I love you."

Sabé walked up to her husband and kissed him. "I love you Jorran, I wouldn't trade my life with you and the children for anything. I just wish I knew more about what happened."

"I know, Beloved. I just wish you could find some kind of peace." Jorran had no idea how to help his wife; he could not understand why she could not move on after so many years.

Sabé smiled weakly. "I know you do, my love, I hope so too. I guess seeing a girl that looked so much like Padmé and her being about the same age as her child would have been just set me off. I'm sorry."

Jorran brought his wife into his arms. "There's no need to apologize, My Love."

Sabé just stood there enjoying the feeling of being in her husband's embrace. In it, she always felt loved and protected. "I guess Leia got her eyes from Senator Organa, his is the same color."

Jorran wrinkled his brow in confusion. "You didn't know?"

"Know what?"

"It's not something that has been officially announced, but it's no state secret." Jorran hesitated, he was not sure if this would help the situation. "Princess Leia was adopted."

Sabé was surprised. "I didn't know that."

When Jorran looked into his wife's eyes, he wished he never told her of the princess's adoption. He could almost see the wheels turning in her head. "Yes, when she was brought into the Organa household it was just a few days after the formation of the Empire. no one really paid any attention, seeing as how the focus was elsewhere."

Sabé remembered those days clearly. Everyone was glued to their HoloNet transmitters seeking information about the new government. Those that supported the new direction watched excitedly while discussing the possibilities with family and friends, and discussing how great it felt to be a part of something so much larger than themselves.

Those that did not support the new direction, sat silently in front of their transmitters In utter shock and disbelief—mourning the loss of the dead Republic. In such a tumultuous time, the sudden appearance of a royal heir was not noticed by the majority of the citizens of Alderaan. When Leia was officially brought out for her first public appearance, three months later, she was immediately accepted into the hearts of the citizens of Alderaan. The people loved their princess.

Sabé got a sudden inspiration. "In the middle of all that, why would the Organas adopt some anonymous baby?"

Jorran sighed, he was not sure if he liked where she was going with this. "What are you thinking Sabé?"

Sabé broke away from her husband and walked toward the window. As she stared out onto Coruscant, Sabé's mind was racing trying to fit together the pieces of the convoluted puzzle. "Think about it for a moment. Bail Organa was Padmé's best friend in the Senate; she told me so herself." Sabé turned back to Jorran with a big smile on her face. "Padmé was nearing her due date when she died or got killed. What if the baby she carried didn't die with her? What if she was adopted by Padmé's good friend, Bail Organa?"

The ambassador had to admit, the scenario did sound logical. However, he knew verifying this theory would be close to impossible. The Organas were very secretive when in came to their daughter.

"Sabé, I'm not sure…" Jorran trailed off weakly, not knowing what to say. He sighed. "Even if this is true. How does it change things? If Senator Amidala was killed, the Organas would not want Princess Leia's biological mother known, to protect her from those responsible for her death."

Sabé nodded in agreement. "You're right, I suppose." The former handmaiden laughed bitterly. "You know, it's very possible that I'm wrong and Princess Leia isn't connected to Padmé in any way."

"Maybe."

"It's possible that I want so badly for it to be so, that I'm looking for connections that aren't there." Sabé's voice was small and weak. "If I am right, though, I want to get to know her while she's here."

Jorran knew that dissuading his wife from this course of action would be impossible. For reasons he could not explain, he was nervous about Sabé getting to know the Princess. He was not really concerned about what Bail Organa would think. His fear was elsewhere—elusive. "Be careful, Beloved. Coruscant is a dangerous planet for those who are too curious."

Sabé smiled in agreement. "I will, my love, but I have to know."

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"The princess is missing. Repeat, the princess is missing. Alert all consulate security and inform Senator Organa." Lieutenant Sobrel was trying to remain calm. For a Royal security officer, this was his greatest fear. Princess Leia Organa had disappeared when they walked through a large crowd. It had not taken long for the team to realize that she was missing, and they had acted immediately.

Sobrel knew the dangers the princess faced while alone on Coruscant. He had been stationed at the Alderaanian consulate for three years. He knew about the very unpleasant underworld that still existed despite a few Imperial attempts to clean up the undercity. Scenarios ran through his mind as he gave orders to fan out in all directions. Could the princess have been kidnapped? It was not uncommon for underworld groups to kidnap the children of influential beings to hold for ransom.

Sobrel's thoughts were interrupted by the chattering of the protocol droid. "Oh dear, where could the princess have gone?" Wild beeping from the astromech droid joined in the panic.

The Lieutenant had enough. "Droids, go back to the consulate." With that he ran toward an alleyway, leaving the droids behind. He could hear the protocol droid's protests, but was glad that it was not following.

As Sobrel ran down the alleyway, he could hear shouting in the distance. He reached the end of the alley and saw a group of stormtroopers, with weapons aimed, surrounding something that was on the ground. A small break in the line revealed that something to be the princess.

The Lieutenant looked up to get his bearings; to his horror, he realized where he was; right in front of the Jedi temple. This was not the place to be found by stormtroopers. He was grateful they did not shoot Princess Leia on sight. It had been known to happen over the years.

He heard commotion in the distance; the rest of the Royal security team was closing in on his location. The stormtroopers heard it as well; they immediately trained their weapons on the incoming team. Sobrel knew that this situation could get very bad, very quickly. If one of his team made a move to raise their weapon, the stormtroopers would begin firing.

"My team, halt!" Sobrel ordered, hoping to diffuse the situation. Sobrel let out a small sigh of relief when he saw his team comply. The stormtroopers, however, were not lowering their weapons.

"All of you, drop your weapons immediately!" The stormtrooper commander's tone was deadly serious. Lieutenant Sobrel motioned his team to comply. After the stormtroopers confiscated all of the weapons, the commander addressed Sobrel. "This is a restricted area. Who are you working for?"

"I am Lieutenant Sobrel of Alderaan Royal Security." He indicated the little girl that was roughly being brought to her feet by one of the soldiers. "This is High Princess Leia Organa, we were charged with protecting her."

"Why was she found in a restricted area, alone?"

"A few moments ago, we got separated from the princess. She must have followed that alleyway behind us to get here. She just arrived on Coruscant this morning, and had no idea this area was restricted." Sobrel always found addressing a stormtrooper unnerving. He hated not being able to see their faces to gauge their reactions. Although, he somehow suspected that if he could see their faces, their expressions would probably be blank and emotionless. That was exactly how Emperor Palpatine liked his soldiers.

The stormtrooper commander gave no indication whether he believed Sobrel's explanation. "We will be taking all of you into custody. Our superior will decide what is to be done with you."

The stormtroopers began putting stun cuffs on the team. When one of them put cuffs onto the princess, Sobrel spoke up. "There is no need to take Princess Leia into custody. She is just a child."

"All of you will be taken into custody."

The stormtrooper's tone was final; Sobrel knew that there would be no negotiating with them. As they were being led away, he hoped that the soldiers' superior may be willing to let him explain.

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"Lord Vader, welcome back to Imperial Center."

Vader barely acknowledged the major's greeting as he walked past him. He did not want to be on the Imperial capitol, but his Master had ordered him to return. He always wanted Vader to make an appearance during Empire Day. Sideous told Vader that it was important for leaders to remain visible to remind the people of their rulers.

The Sith lord was not looking forward to all of the ceremony associated with Empire Day. Sideous told him that ceremony was very important in maintaining order. The people crave the structure and tradition that is associated with ceremony. It helps subjects feel like they are part of something and they are participating in something larger than themselves.

He knew he had better things he should be doing. The Outer Rim was in chaos, as always. The Hutt control of many Outer Rim planets had to be stopped. He hated those gluttonous, slave trading primitives. He longed for the day when the Outer Rim would be under the control of the New Order. Until the, there would be no peace.

As he walked deeper into the military substation, he was aware that the major was following nervously behind him. He knew that the major was waiting to give his briefing. Still striding purposefully, Vader did not turn around as he addressed the major. "What do you have to tell me, Major Nol?"

Nol coughed nervously then forged ahead cautiously with the briefing. Vader listened without comment as the major informed the Sith lord of military matters in the Imperial Sector. Nol also told him of the terrorist threat, but assured him that proper security was in place.

When the major was finished, Vader was about to dismiss him when the Sith lord felt a tremor in the Force. He could tell that it emanated from something nearby. Vader quickly followed the tremor until he came up upon the holding cells. Most of the cells were full of the usual lowlifes and malcontents that Imperial Center was infested with. At the end of the row of cells, however, he saw a child huddled in the corner in a cell of her own.

"Major Nol, why do you have a child in this cell?" Vader stared at the little girl who was trying her best to remain brave, but failing at the moment. He could feel this girl's fear, that must have been the tremor that he felt. Still, his feelings told him that there was something else. For some reason, the Force surrounded this girl like a blanket.

"We just picked her and her security team up about fifteen minutes ago," Nol explained. "She was found loitering near sector M4-239. The security team that arrived after she was apprehended claims she is the High Princess of Alderaan; we are verifying that claim as we speak."

Imperial Center sector M4-239 was well known to the soldiers stationed on the capitol; it was the Jedi temple. The entire area surrounding it was considered a dead zone; no one was allowed there. A few curious pedestrians had even been shot.

Lord Vader continued to stare at the tiny girl. "Why wasn't I informed of this immediately?"

Nol had not had much face to face time with the second in command of the Empire. However, Vader's reputation had preceded him. The Sith lord could feel the man's fear; Nol knew now that he had made a grave misstep.

"Lord Vader, I deeply apologize. It seemed such a trivial matter." The major answered, trying hard not to stutter.

Vader turned his head sharply toward the frightened officer. "Do not presume. Anything regarding that sector is, most definitely, not trivial."

The major bowed his head. "I apologize, My Lord, this mistake will not be repeated."

"See that it doesis not."

Turning away from the frightened major, Lord Vader returned his gaze to the girl locked up in the holding cell. She had recovered some of her calm; her fear was no longer spiking wildly. There was still fear, but much of the previous fear had turned into a sort of curiosity. Vader knew that this girl had listened intently to his and the major's conversation with much interest.

"You said she had a security escort. Where are they?"

Nol, happy that he had been spared the wrath of Lord Vader, was glad that his superior was returning to the business at hand and not Nol's failure. "They are on the other end of the cell block."

With one last glance at the princess, Vader stalked down the cell block to where the team was being held. When they reached their destination, Nol relayed to Vader the details concerning their arrest. The major pointed at the leader. "This is Lieutenant Sobrel of Alderaan Royal Security. According to the report, he and the rest of his team arrived on the scene after the girl was apprehended."

"Lieutenant, explain why your charge found herself, alone, in a restricted zone." Vader demanded.

Pushing back his fear, Sobrel tried to explain. "Lord Vader, the princess just arrived on Coruscant this morning. She was doing some shopping and we got separated from her. We searched for her; when we found her she had already entered the restricted zone."

Using the Force, Vader probed the Lieutenant's mind for any hints of deception, there were none. Knowing he would not get any answers from this security officer, the Sith Lord turned quickly and walked toward the princess's cell. When he reached the cell, he demanded that the ray shields be lowered and that the princess be retrieved.

The three walked down the cell block hallway. Vader could tell the girl was terrified at the prospect of going anywhere with him, but he was impressed with how she was handling herself. She was walking with her head held high, not allowing any outward show of fear. Her bearing seemed familiar.

A commotion in one of the cells interrupted the procession. "Lord Vader, where are you taking her?" Lieutenant Sobrel demanded.

Vader stopped and turned to look at the prisoner. "The princess is to be questioned."

Sobrel began shaking his head. "No, you can't do that! She's just a child! This is an outrage! She is the daughter of Senator Organa and she's High Princess of Alderaan."

A cold rage overfrom the Alderaanian's disrespectful tone came over Vader. Using that rage to feed the dark side of the Force, the Sith lord gestured with his hand. Suddenly, Sobrel began to gag and convulse slightly. His face began to turn a bluish hue as his body was denied oxygen.

"Please, don't do this!" A crying Leia yelled.

_"You're a good person, Anakin, don't do this."_ Startled by the sudden memory invasion, Vader let go of the whimpering man and a thud could be heard as the man fell to his knees gasping for breath. Despite much effort in ridding himself of his former existence, sometimes flashes of memories would break his control and dominate his mind momentarily. He hated these moments; he especially hated the memories of _her._ He despised Anakin, so he despised all of Anakin's memories.

Vader took control of himself and turned to look at the girl. To his surprise, this girl was staring up directly into his mask. Many people, in situations such as the one she was in, would have been too afraid to look at his face. The Sith Lord had to admit, her courage intrigued him. Vader addressed the nervous Imperial major. "Take the girl to your office; cuffs will not be necessary."

As the group left the cell block, weak sounds of protest from Sobrel could barely be heard.

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The room was fairly small and utilitarian. Unlike her father's office, Leia could see very few personal touches which identified its owner. Another look revealed the only personal aspect of the Imperial major's office, a small, deactivated holo at the corner of the desk. Leia's quick activation of the holo revealed an image of a smiling, blonde, woman holding a toddler. Knowing that she probably would get in more trouble if she was caught touching the things on the desk, the princess returned the holo to its previous, deactivated state.

The only source of light, at the moment, was a small desk lamp which produced frightening shadows on the walls. Leia was trying to remain calm, but the princess found that was becoming more and more difficult with each passing moment. She felt guilty for bringing the security team into this situation. If it was not for her explorations, they would not be held in that cell. Whatever Vader did to Sobrel was her fault, she knew it.

The princess had never met Lord Vader until now. He was always the mysterious figure that brought fear in the hearts of the enemies of the Empire, and its citizens. Vader was usually on the Outer Rim, he almost never went to any Core worlds. However, for some reason, Leia always knew that someday she would meet him. The princess never was certain if she was afraid or fascinated by the prospect.

Leia had never thought her first meeting with Lord Vader would be under these circumstances. Now that she had met him in person, the princess knew first hand firsthand why he was the most feared man in the galaxy. Leia remembered what he did to Lieutenant Sobrel; somehow, Vader had choked him without laying a hand on him. The princess heard many stories of Lord Vader's mysterious powers but she always dismissed them as superstition. Now, she was not certain.

Leia jumped when she heard a noise on the other side of the door. She knew he was coming. The princess called on every lesson on Royal comportment that she had ever heard. She decided that she would behave like the princess that she was and not show fear. _What would Mother do if she were here?_ Knowing the answer, Leia stood quickly before the door opened and faced the door to calmly, yet defiantly, meet whatever fate awaited her.

Lord Vader slowly strode into the room with Major Nol trailing behind him. The small amount of light in the room created a large, looming shadow of Vader which filled the entire room and fell upon the princess. Leia fought to remain calm as regarded her for a few seconds. Finally, he spoke. "Now, young Princess Leia, we have a few things to discuss."


	8. Chapter 7

_Author's Note: The quote about halfway through the chapter was originally attributed to Edmund Burke, I can't claim credit for it._

_**Chapter 7:**_

Senator Organa sat listening to the senator from Naboo's closing remarks. Senator Amidala's replacement was a long-time political crony of Palpatine since before the Emperor was a Senator. Omerth Narami was an advisor to King Veruna, Queen Amidala's predecessor. It was Narami who convinced the King to appoint Palpatine as Senator. After Senator Amidala's death, the Emperor convinced the Queen to appoint Narami as Senator even though he was well over the normal age of public service for Naboo.

Senator Narami was an outspoken supporter of the Empire. Every week he held press conferences praising every action that the Emperor took, no matter how egregious. Bail wondered, for the millionth time, whether the citizens of Naboo were happy with their esteemed senator. He suspected that they were not. However, since the formation of the Empire, Naboo became more insular. The queen announced that, while they supported the Empire, the government was going to focus on domestic issues and draw back from galactic affairs. Ever since that announcement, news from Naboo was rare.

Currently, Senator Narami was encouraging his fellow senators to support a bill that would allocate funds to build a statue in honor of Emperor Palpatine. "Fellow Senators, in honor of the eight anniversary of the formation of this glorious Empire, we must honor the man responsible for it. It will be a reminder to future generations of our history and how we were saved from the brink of anarchy. It will also be a reminder to our enemies, that the Empire will stand strong against tyranny like we did on the first Empire Day."

Bail could not listen to any more of the speech. He knew the motion would pass by a large margin; and that he, along with Mon Mothma, would be among those voting in favor of it. It was one of those harmless bills that he could vote for to show his loyalty without feeling as if he was selling his soul. Bail did not relish the idea of a large statue of Palpatine in the Governmental Complex courtyard, but voting against it would not be wise.

Waiting for Narami to finish his speech, Bail's thoughts drifted to the events of the next few days. The Empire Day celebrations began the next day, but the actual anniversary was the day after that. Senator Organa went over the schedule for the next day. Because of the threat, Bail decided to cut a few events from Leia's schedule. Her day would consist of a few receptions, and a royal ball tomorrow evening with members of several worlds' royal families. It was considered to be quite the social event; Bail knew his daughter was thrilled to finally be able to attend.

Bail wished the ball could be cut from Leia's schedule, but he knew it was impossible. The Empire Day Royal Ball was always attended by Emperor Palpatine. Every royal family representative, from all the worlds in the Empire that were monarchies, was expected to attend. It was the event when each representative would confirm their world's fealty by bowing to the Emperor. It was a sickening and degrading event that had become accepted in royal circles.

Every year, Bail hated watching his wife swear fealty on behalf of Alderaan. He knew she did not mean a word of it, but was only doing it for the survival of her world. It was bad enough when Breha had to do it; but now he was going to have to escort his daughter up to the very embodiment of evil so that she could also swear Alderaan's loyalty. Bail hoped that the Emperor would not look too closely at Leia using his powers. Usually, the fealty oath lasted about ten seconds and the Emperor would barely acknowledge the presence of those giving the oath, but sometimes Palpatine would speak to some for a few minutes before dismissing them. The Senator hoped and prayed the Emperor would ignore his little girl.

Finally, Senator Narami finished his speech and a vote was called. Without much hesitation, Bail pressed the "accept the proposal" button in his senate pod. Not surprisingly, the motion passed. He was certain construction of the statue would begin in just a few months. The thought sickened him but it was something he had to accept.

As Senator Organa was looking at his notes for the next proposal to be debated, one of his aids came into the pod. "Senator, we just received an urgent message from Lieutenant Sobrel. Princess Leia is missing."  
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Senator Organa hurriedly entered the Alderaanian consulate and demanded any information that the staff had regarding his daughter's disappearance. Bail left the Senate before the session was completed, which was considered a breach of protocol. He knew that he was going to receive a rebuke from the Vice Chair, but he did not care. His focus was on one thing, finding Leia; everything else be damned.

"There's not much information, the team reported her missing about twenty minutes ago; since then, we have not been able to contact Lieutenant Sobrel." The aid was clearly upset. The Royal Family was loved and respected by most Alderaanians, and it was unthinkable that their High Princess would go missing. The consulate staff was almost in a state of panic.

Bail was trying to remain calm, but was finding it harder to do so. "Is there anything on the Imperial Channel?"

The Imperial Channel was the unofficial name given to the thousands of fragments of data that leaked from less secure Imperial transmissions. It was never a full transmission, but sometimes a word or two would leak through. In truth, it was usually worthless information but Senator Organa had one staff member assigned to scanning the Empire's information chaff on the off chance that something useful to the Organization would be discovered. Finding clues from the Imperial Channel about Leia's disappearance was a long shot, but Bail was ready to try anything.

One of his assistants shook his head regretfully. "No Senator, we've been scanning since she was reported missing but nothing has been found yet."

Suddenly, over the din of voices, a senatorial aid could be heard calling for the Senator's attention. "Sir, we just received an official communiqué. It's from the military. Princess Leia, Lieutenant Sobrel, and his team have all been taken into custody."

He stood there a moment as his mind tried to process this new and frightening information. It was all Bail could do not to pass out. This was one of his worst fears revealed. Questions ran through his mind so quickly that he felt almost dizzy. He did not want to believe what he just heard. Finally, he found his voice again. "Why?"

"The message doesn't say. They're being held at Station One."

If Bail was afraid before, it was nothing compared to the fear that coursed through him when he found out where they were taken. Station One was the main hub of Imperial military activity on Coruscant. It was the headquarters of planetary security. The most dangerous prisoners who committed the worst crimes were taken there.

A small glimmer of hope tried to break free from Bail's oppressive feeling of doom. Station One was the closest Imperial military substation to the Senate Complex. Whatever happened may have occurred near there and Leia and the team were only taken there because of its proximity. It was the only hope Bail held on to at that moment.

"I'm going down there immediately." Bail decided with no hesitation and left the consulate.

As Bail was hurrying down the halls of the diplomatic wing of the Senate Complex, the intelligence analyst in charge of monitoring the Imperial Channel ran to catch up. "Senator, I got something just now."

From the look on the analyst's face, Bail knew he was not going to like this information. He slowed his pace to let her catch up, but he did not stop. "What is it?"

"Sir, just a while ago, Lord Vader's flagship arrived and is in orbit now. There are a few transmissions suggesting that Vader was on his way to Station One. Other transmission fragments confirm that he's there already. Also, it seems that he's questioning an 'important detainee.'"

Bail stopped suddenly. His knees were weak; it was all he could do to stand. _That's it, he knows…He knows that Leia is his daughter…He's going to take her away…I failed her, I failed Breha, I failed the Jedi…She was entrusted to me and I couldn't protect her…My precious little girl is in the hands of Vader._ Cold, icy fear gripped his heart—fear so real he could almost taste it. If he wanted to speak at this moment, he would not have been able to. His mouth went dry and his voice left him. Bail Organa's greatest nightmare had suddenly become very real.

"Senator, what do you want us to do?"

Bail tried to understand what the analyst was saying. He knew she was asking him something, but his turmoil was so great that processing questions was becoming an impossible task. _Right, she wants to know what I want to do. It doesn't matter what I do! I can't fix this._ He wanted to scream at the woman waiting for him to respond. _Don't you realize what happened? Leia is in the clutches of her Sith father!_

Finally, Bail found his voice again. "I'm going to Station One right away."

The analyst nodded. "Do you want me to send a security team with you?"

_Are you insane? I can't be responsible for losing anyone else._ "That will not be necessary; I'm going alone."

As he left the building and strode toward his speeder, Bail wondered what he would do once he reached Station One. _I have to try, I can't just let him have her without a fight._ Bail thought of several possible ways to get her out of there, but logic told him that he would not win if he went up against Darth Vader. _If I can't rescue Leia from that monster, then I will die trying._

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"Now, young Princess Leia, we have a few things to discuss." Lord Vader spoke menacingly to the girl who was staring at him defiantly. He noticed that she had stood right before he entered the room. Vader knew she did not want to appear weak in front of, what he understood to be, the terrifying sight of his armor and mask. He was impressed, most children, and adults, would be crying and begging for mercy.

"Would you please sit down?" Lord Vader's tone was such that no reasonable person could mistake what he said for an actual question; it was an order.

The princess complied with a practiced grace. Vader noted that she still kept her eyes firmly on him; she refused to show weakness. The Sith Lord wondered if the Princess's stubbornness would eventually cause the Empire problems. This headstrong streak of hers would eventually have to be broken.

Vader was intrigued by how the Force enveloped the little princess. He wondered if the girl had any inkling that great power surrounded her. _If Organa only knew what he was raising._ He could tell this power was latent; she had no training whatsoever.

Finally, the Sith Lord spoke. "Were you aware that you illegally entered a restricted zone?"

"No, I was not aware." Leia paused for a moment. "Why is the Jedi Temple a restricted zone?"

At the mention of the word, 'Jedi', Lord Vader's anger flared. "I am asking the questions, Princess." He let his sudden rage fade into the background to feed his connection to the dark side, and forged ahead with the questioning. "You were there alone. What were you doing?"

Fearful of Vader's anger, Leia bowed her head slightly to not meet his gaze. "I wanted to look at the temple. It is so beautiful; I wanted to see it up close."

Vader probed the girl's mind and was surprised at how difficult it was. He knew she had not been trained; he realized the princess was blocking him without conscious effort. He reached out with the Force to her, and Vader was amazed by what he found. Her presence in the Force was almost blinding. She was light in the Force that the Sith Lord was uncomfortable being around. He was going to pull away, but decided to go further. Going deeper, however, Vader found faint whispers of darkness, darkness that could be nourished and brought to the surface. _If she embraced the dark side, this girl could be a powerful ally in the future. _

This was not the first time Lord Vader contemplated future plans. The relationship between master and apprentice in the Sith Order was one of power and yearning. The master had all the power while the apprentice yearns constantly for that power. It was tradition for the apprentice to betray the master when he was strong enough; it was the way of the Sith.

Vader knew that he was not as powerful as he was before Mustafar. His connection to the dark side was strong, and he was more powerful than any Jedi ever was, but he knew something was missing. Vader cursed Kenobi again for the loss of his flesh limbs—limbs that would have been a living conduit for his power and not dead durasteel.

He understood that if he ever wanted to wield the power that was rightly his, he would need help in the future. Vader would have to take an apprentice of his own, and together they could defeat Lord Sideous. He wondered if this girl was worth considering as a possible apprentice; it was time to test her.

Without turning away from the princess, the Sith spoke to the nervous young officer still hovering in the back of the office. "Major Nol, leave us."

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After being dismissed, Major Nol patrolled the hallways of Station One and got status reports from various departments. It was busy work, pure and simple--his desperate attempt to keep his mind off of what might be happening in his office.

Adan Nol had enrolled right out of secondary school in the new Republic Military Academy that had been started a year after the Clone War had begun. The purpose of the academy was to train officers for the Grand Army. The Jedi who were commanding the army were stretched thin and many felt that they were not adequate. A suspicion against the Jedi was growing among many, as well. The blame for all of the Republic's losses was put squarely on their shoulders.

At the time of his enrollment, Adan did not understand the political reasons behind the academy's founding; he had no interest in politics. He wanted to serve the Republic and he felt being an officer in the Grand Army was the best way to do it. So, right out of secondary school, an idealistic seventeen year old enrolled and was accepted, despite his family's objections.

At the beginning of his junior year, the galaxy was turned upside down. The Jedi were revealed to have been plotting against the Chancellor and had even started the bloody war that had killed billions. Adan remembered that fateful night when the Supreme Chancellor proposed to organize the Republic into an Empire. It was exciting; finally things would change, finally this galaxy will be safe for everyone.

With glee, the students of the, now renamed, Emperor Palpatine Military Preparatory Academy pledged their undying loyalty to the Empire and its leader. It was a switch from his previous oath that they took to the Republic. Before, the oath was to the Republic only and not to its leader. Now, they were expected to give an oath of loyalty to Emperor Palpatine himself.

At that point, however, Adan Nol did not care; he supported the Emperor completely. He remembered thinking about his family that were killed by CIS forces a year earlier. His parents, his younger sisters, his older brother, and his nephew were killed in one blast that took out the entire city. Adan remembered how he promised his dead family that no one else would lose their lives in such a wasteful tragedy. He promised them that he would help the Empire keep everyone safe. _We will, finally, all live in peace._

Adan thought about the idealistic youth he once was; that boy no longer existed. In his place was an officer who had seen too much in the years since his graduation. Idealism did not have its place among the Imperial military. He was stationed on Kashyyyk after his graduation and watched as Moff Tarkin began rounding up the native inhabitants for some top-secret project. Adan remembered being outraged, this was not what he thought the Empire was. He wondered if the Emperor knew what Tarkin was doing. If he did, Adan reasoned, Palpatine would put a stop to it immediately.

In his righteous fury, Nol confronted Tarkin and threatened to expose his actions to the Emperor himself if they were not stopped. In retrospect, Adan realized that he should have known it would not have made any difference but he was not prepared for Tarkin's reaction. The memory of the Moff's cold laughter, even after all this time, still brought chills down his spine. Tarkin informed Nol that the labor acquisition project on Kashyyyk was being done with the Emperor's full support and the operation was being repeated on other "primitive" planets.

The result of the confrontation was a demotion and an eventual transfer. Over time, any lingering doubts about the Emperor's complicity in the actions on Kashyyyk vanished. In his career, Adan Nol saw too many atrocities to think that Tarkin's actions were isolated to one madman in a high position.

He knew from experience that, if he was to survive, he would have to stay quiet and follow orders. It was not as if it would make a difference. While most of the galaxy says yes, one lone voice saying no would not be heard. That argument was reasonable, in Adan's mind, but he still was haunted by something his father used to say_: "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." _Nol wondered, if his father were alive, would he still consider his son to be a good man.

As Nol progressed up the ranks, he was known as a very capable leader; someone a superior officer could count on. No one could say that Adan Nol did not do his job.

Major Nol continued to wander the base aimlessly. _Of all days, this is the day that girl decides to go sight seeing._ When she was brought in, he knew Lieutenant Sobrel was telling the truth; the girl got lost in the wrong section. He had contacted the Alderaanian Consulate shortly after questioning the security detail. A few moments later, Darth Vader arrived.

Darth Vader, that name brought terror to the hearts of all who served the Empire. Major Nol had heard enough stories over the years to be completely terrified of the second in command of the Empire. From the brief moments that he had been around Lord Vader, Adan now knew the stories were true. What he did to Sobrel was not natural, somehow Vader had choked the man without touching him. To hear about his strange powers from hearsay was one thing, seeing those horrific abilities up close was another.

Now, for reasons Nol did not want to fathom, Lord Vader was questioning the little princess in his office. He tried to block out memories of Imperial interrogations that he had witnessed over the years; interrogations that were strictly off the record. This was not off the record though, this girl was not just some anonymous person; she was the High Princess of Alderaan. He hoped that fact might save her from a full interrogation.

He knew the sector she trespassed in was a dead zone, and any who were caught there were immediately under suspicion for being a traitor to the Empire, but Adan hoped Lord Vader would be merciful, for once in his life. _Maybe he'll see that she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time._

Major Nol looked down at his hands and noticed they were shaking. _I can't do this now, especially while Lord Vader is here. I must do my job._ Thinking about his wife and three-year-old son waiting for him at home, Adan took a deep breath to calm his raging emotions. He was glad no one else was in this part of the base.

A sudden sound from his communications unit caused him to jump in fright. Calming down from the sudden startle, the Major activated his communicator. "Nol here, what is it?"

"Major, Senator Bail Organa has arrived. He is demanding to see his daughter, the princess." The disembodied voice reported from the other end.

_What am I supposed to say to him? Your daughter is being interrogated by the monster that is the second in command of the entire Empire._ "I'll be right there."

"Please repeat Major, I didn't understand your last command."

Sighing, Adan repeated louder in a voice that was not just above a whisper, like before. "I'll be right there." Steeling himself for a confrontation with, he assumed to be, a desperate father. He knew that, if he was in Senator Organa's position, he would be ready to fight and kill anyone who may be harming his child.

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Leia had never been more frightened in her life. This being that she was now left alone with was something out of her nightmares. Yes, she had seen holos of Lord Vader, but the true terror that he invoked was something only experienced in person. As she regarded him, she noticed the little bit of light in the room seemed to dissipate with his presence. It was almost as if Lord Vader radiated darkness.

He had only asked her a few questions, up to this point, but Leia felt something as Vader looked at her. It began as almost a buzzing in her head. At first, Leia thought the sound came from the room and looked around for its possible source. Then she realized it was coming from inside her head. It was not really even a sound; that word was inadequate to describe what the princess was experiencing.

She felt something trying to connect with her; she realized that somehow Lord Vader was responsible. Leia had no idea how she would know that, but she was certain of it. He wanted to read her innermost thoughts. Using an instinct that the princess did not know she had, she put up a mental block to try to stop the invader into her mind. Vader relented for only a moment before he tried a new tactic.

This time, Leia felt that the connection he made to her was not just to her mind, but it was deeper this time. She knew, somehow, that Vader was not just looking for surface thoughts, he seemed to be searching for certain emotions. It only lasted a few seconds before Vader pulled back. Leia sighed in relief when she felt the pressure on her mind abate.

Leia wanted to cry; she wanted to beg this creature to let her go. She wanted her father there to hug her and tell her that everything was going to be all right. _Please Father, come for me._

However, her stubbornness rebelled at this idea, and Leia blocked out all thoughts of giving in. _I am the High Princess of Alderaan, I can't cry in front of him. Mother would never cry in front of this monster._

Finally, Vader began speaking again. "Princess, I believe you when you say that you only wanted to see…that building…up close. What I want to know is this: why are you so interested in a building once occupied by traitors?"

It was a question that Leia was not sure how to answer. She was not lying when she said that she found it beautiful, but that was not the only reason. She was drawn to it for reasons she could not explain. As she examined her feelings further, Leia admitted that the sensation of being drawn to the temple was the same feeling as when she seemed to be drawn to the bust of Vader at the art museum. Horrified that her mind would make such connections, Leia tried to banish those thoughts.

Leia knew that Lord Vader was waiting and she was surprised that he did not demand an answer. "I'm not sure," she answered truthfully. "I didn't know what it was until my droid told me. I just thought it was a beautiful building."

Lord Vader did not comment on her answer. After a few seconds, Leia felt him trying to make another mental connection. This time, it was not so intrusive and overpowering; but it was still there. The princess did not like the idea of Vader inside her head, but she could not fight him anymore. Her strength was waning.

"Princess, you need to be more careful. You are only a child and you do not know any better. Your father must keep a better watch over you."

Leia's anger rose up quickly at Vader's condescending remarks. She hated being told she was a child, and treated as such. This _thing,_ who did not even know her, was questioning her intellect. In her anger, Leia momentarily forgot Vader's terrifying physical presence and powers. She forgot that he had forged some kind of mind connection with her.

Thinking back on the experience later, Leia would remember feeling like her anger was somehow being fed. In any other situation, she would have been annoyed by Vader's comment, but would not have felt this level of anger. However, at that moment, Leia was outraged. She also, at that moment, seemed to feel something from the other end of the link. For a second, she could feel a sense of triumph and amusement coming from Vader. It was very brief, but real nonetheless.

She wanted to scream at Vader in protest, but common sense finally prevailed. Leia remembered an anger control method Bail had taught her when she was young, Leia closed her eyes briefly, took a deep breath, and counted to ten in her head. Finally, the storm seemed to pass and she was herself again. "Maybe so, Lord Vader. I apologize for entering a restricted zone. I also apologize for bringing my security team there as well. I hope my actions do not cause them any further trouble. I take full responsibility."

Finally, the hold that Vader had over her mind was gone. Leia felt like she was alone, once more, inside her own head. Her relief was interrupted by Vader's communications unit coming to life. "Lord Vader, Senator Bail Organa has arrived. He wants to see his daughter."

"I will meet with him personally." Giving Leia one last look in her direction, Vader turned and quickly strode out of the small office. As much as she might have wanted to, Leia did not allow herself to cry. She knew Vader could still come back. _No, I can't cry until I'm away from him._

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Bail had only been waiting for five minutes; but to the panicked father, those minutes seemed like eons. When he arrived at Station One, he was sent to a small conference room off the main lobby and told that Major Nol would be meeting him shortly.

This was not turning out the way he had expected. The senator was almost certain he would be immediately put under arrest the second his stepped foot in the building. If Vader discovered that he was Leia's biological father, Bail figured that he would be charged with kidnapping or something of that nature. So far, the officers that he had spoken with seemed fairly polite. He was puzzled, but for the first time since he left the Senate Complex, hope that this situation was not as horrific as he once thought was beginning to appear.

The door opened and another Imperial officer came in; this time it was a senior officer. "Senator Organa, I apologize for the wait. I am Major Adan Nol, in command of this base."

"Major, I was informed that you are holding my daughter, Princess Leia Organa, and her security detail. What is the reason behind this?"

"Senator, your daughter was discovered alone in a restricted area. According to Lieutenant Sobrel, the princess had gotten separated from her security team and wandered into the area alone. After she was apprehended, the team came to the location. The troopers that found them brought them here."

_Trespassing? That's all this is about is? _Bail did not think he had ever felt more relieved. Before, he was certain that his precious daughter was lost to him. _It was just a misunderstanding. Maybe the rumor that Lord Vader was questioning her is not true. He wouldn't bother questioning someone regarding trespassing._ "Where was she found?"

"She was found on the grounds of the old Jedi temple," the major answered. "Apparently, she was never told that area was restricted." Nol was not subtle in directing his last comment directly to the Senator.

Bail's hope faded slightly with this news. _What was she doing there?_ He was then reminded of recent conversations he had with Leia. He remembered her fascination with the building and how she wanted to see it. _Why didn't you listen to me Leia?_ Bail knew, among the many restricted areas on Coruscant, the area surrounding the Jedi temple was not the one to get discovered in."I assure you Major, she must have gotten lost." The senator hoped he sounded convincing.

Nol nodded. "That's what Lieutenant Sobrel said." He stopped for a moment. To Bail, it seemed that Nol was struggling with his words, almost like he had to break some unpleasant news and did not know how to say it. "Senator, I do need to inform you that Lord Vader arrived not too long ago. He is currently questioning the princess."

_By the Maker, it's true! _Bail's legs weakened and he sunk down into a chair; all hope vanished. _He will figure it out when he speaks to her, she looks too much like Padmé for him not to._ "When can I see her?"

"I don't know, I'll let Lord Vader know you are here." Nol seemed very uncomfortable with the entire situation. Bail even noticed something that could have been sadness in his eyes. Turning quickly, Nol exited the conference room and left Bail to his thoughts.

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Lord Vader's thoughts consumed him as he strode down Station One's corridors. The princess had much potential; he remembered how easy it was to invoke her anger. His condescending manner and questioning of her intellect was all it took. Of course, he fed that anger with his Force link with her. _This girl could be very useful for me in the future._ He was not certain if he would take the girl as his apprentice when she grows up, but she was a possibility worth considering.

The mind link with her had been interesting. After Vader had gotten though some unexpected initial resistance, he found the girl's mind to be quite strong. Somehow, the girl knew what he was doing and actively fought the intrusion. He had never known an untrained child to be this skilled. _Except me._ Vader remembered how he had been brought before the Jedi council as a boy. They had tried to enter his mind and he fought it as much as he could. Pushing back the unwanted memories, Vader continued stalking down the corridor.

The Sith Lord decided to release the girl and the security team; charges would not be brought up against them. First, however, he wanted to speak to Senator Organa. Rumors about his disloyalty were rampant throughout the Empire; he worked against Palpatine in the last days of the Republic. Organa was one of the Senators that his wife had worked with to undermine Palpatine's power. Vader was convinced that, along with Kenobi, this senator had poisoned her mind against him. _She would be at my side right now if it wasn't for them._

Vader wanted to kill Organa slowly for what he had done, but he was not unaware of the political realities. His master was keeping the Senate in tact for a purpose and, despite his anger, the Sith knew that he could not act on his rage at present. _Someday Organa._

He then remembered the girl. _If I take the girl as my apprentice someday, I will turn her against her father like Organa turned my wife against me. That will be the last thing he will know before I destroy him._

Stopping before he entered the conference room, Vader activated his communicator. "Major, release the princess and the security team, send them to the holding area."

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Bail stood quickly when Vader entered the conference room. He did not want the Sith to catch him at a disadvantage. This was the last creature he wanted to see at this moment. In truth, he would have rather have had an audience with the Emperor himself. "Lord Vader, please accept my apologies for this unfortunate incident."

Vader did not speak immediately. From the few encounters that Bail had with him in the past, the senator knew this tactic. The Sith would cause uncomfortable silences in conversation as a way of controlling them and putting people on the defensive.

Also, Bail knew that Vader was probably trying to probe his mind using the Force. Yoda had warned him of this the last time he saw the Jedi Master. He had even taught Bail a few techniques a non-Force user could employ to help combat a mind probe. The senator hoped those methods would be enough to hide his deepest secrets.

Finally, Vader broke the silence. "Senator Organa, you have apparently not informed your daughter of certain regulations."

"Again, I apologize. She just arrived this morning and I have not had the opportunity to..."

Vader interrupted, "I do not want to hear your excuses. You are fortunate the girl was not shot on sight. I am certain that you would not want anything happen to someone you consider precious."

Bail took a deep breath. "No, Lord Vader, I would not."

In the uncomfortable silence that followed, Bail was finding it hard to imagine that this creature standing before him was once considered a hero to billions and the "Chosen One" to the Jedi.

After getting what he wanted from the senator, Vader turned toward the door. "Princess Leia and the others have been released. You may meet them in the holding area." Before leaving the room, the Sith turned again toward Bail. "Your daughter is too curious for her own good. It is a trait I would discourage if I were you."

Bail nearly wept in relief. _She's still mine, he didn't take her!_ The senator wanted to run to get his daughter out of this horrible place, but he knew he was still being watched. He strode quickly toward the holding area. The sight that awaited him when he got there nearly broke his reserve; the sight of his precious girl smiling at him.

He could tell Leia was mentally and physically exhausted. She was putting up a brave front, but he knew it was an act. With joy, Bail took his daughter's hand and led her out of Station One. After telling the freed security team that he would speak to them about this incident tomorrow, the group separated and Bail led Leia to his speeder.

Before they reached the speeder, however, Leia flung her arms around Bail's legs. He bent down and saw that she was weeping. She still clung to him as her father picked her up. Murmuring words of comfort, Bail held her as she cried. After a few minutes, he noticed that Leia had fallen asleep. Not wanting to wake her, he gently placed her into the speeder.

As he drove the speeder to his Coruscant residence, Bail knew that he would eventually have to question Leia regarding what happened, but not right now. Right now, he would be her father and she would be his little girl.


	9. Chapter 8

**_Chapter 8:_ **

"She's all right Breha; exhausted, but all right." Bail had contacted Alderaan the moment he had finished putting Leia to bed. For the last hour, he had been relating the events of the night.

Breha wiped a tear that had formed in her eye and sighed. Bail could tell, even through the holographic image, that his wife was not well. "We never should have let her go; we should have kept her on Alderaan."

"My love," Bail began softly. "You know you couldn't have made the trip. Leia had to be the Royal Representative." The queen of Alderaan had been fighting a degenerative disease for the last five years, and both of them knew that the disease was slowly winning. It was something neither of them liked to talk about. This was the first year Breha had not been able to travel off world; her doctors would not allow it.

"Alderaan did not have to send a Royal Representative this year. Palpatine would not notice one less planet participating in his farce," Breha shot back.

Bail hoped and prayed that no one was tapping into the transmission. Comments like that were not technically illegal, but if they were known to have come from the head of state, Alderaan would be subject to even greater scrutiny—scrutiny that the fledgling rebellion organization could not afford. "Breha, you know he would have," Bail answered softly. He hoped that Breha would be reminded that Alderaan was under greater scrutiny than other planets in the Empire because of the world's well-known philosophies.

The queen hung her head slightly when she realized her mistake. "You're right, of course." She paused a moment before continuing. "I could have sent my sister; she could have served as Representative."

"My love, we can't keep Leia locked away forever."

"I know Bail, you've told me that a thousand times." Breha returned in annoyance.

"I didn't mean to lecture you," he answered tiredly. This was not the first time the couple had had this conversation.

"I know, you were just reminding me." Breha smiled weakly. "I just wish that it did not have to be so soon; I wish she had a few more years before..." The queen trailed off. Her husband knew her heart regarding this matter; she did not need to say it again.

"I know Breha, but waiting one, or five, more years wouldn't have made this any easier."

"Yes, but I never thought that she would be taken into custody her first day on Coruscant, even if it was a misunderstanding."

Bail had not told his wife everything regarding what happened. He only told her that Leia had gotten lost, ended up in a restricted area, and been caught by stormtroopers. He had not told Breha which restricted area Leia had been found in and the fact that Darth Vader himself had questioned her. He knew he had to tell her, but Bail did not know how. He decided that the direct approach would be the least painful. "My love, there's something else."

"Something else? What is it?"

Bail took a deep breath to prepare himself for what he knew was to come. "The restricted area she was caught in was the courtyard of the Jedi temple."

Through the distorted holographic image, Bail could see his wife close her eyes and put her hands over her mouth in shock. "What was she doing there?"

"I'm not entirely certain. Tomorrow morning, I'm going to ask Leia what happened. I only know what the soldiers told me." Bail hesitated a moment before continuing. "I do know that when we first arrived, Leia was very interested in the Temple. She asked to see it up close. I told her that wasn't possible, but you know how stubborn Leia can get when she has her mind set on something. I'm afraid she may have intentionally lost her security detail to take a closer look."

Breha was well aware of Leia's biological parentage. She knew her father was once a Jedi before he betrayed them to become Darth Vader. Bail and his wife had only discussed this fact once, when he brought the infant Leia home for the first time. They both decided never to speak of it again, but it hung like a shadow over the couple. Hearing that Leia was showing interest in anything related to the Jedi was a horrible reminder of their adopted daughter's true origins. "How did the Royal Guard lose a little girl? Are they that incompetent?"

Bail knew that it was not the Royal Guard that his wife was upset about, but it was too dangerous to discuss her true fears. "I assure you Breha, Lieutenant Sobrel and his team are very capable. However, I will be discussing this situation, at length, with him tomorrow."

The queen nodded her approval. She then tilted her head slightly to the side. Bail knew this gesture well. He knew that was the gesture she used when she was trying to figure something out. "There's something else you're not telling me."

What Bail was not telling his wife was the very thing that disturbed him the most. He did not want to burden his wife with this knowledge, but he knew it was not fair to keep it from her. "My love, when Leia was taken into custody..." Bail began weakly before stopping. Despite his many years of experience in speaking, he had no idea how to gently tell his wife the truth.

"Bail, you're scaring me! What happened?" The Queen demanded.

"When Leia was taken into custody, Lord Vader arrived shortly afterward. He questioned Leia... Alone."

Through the HoloNet transmitter, Bail could see Breha's arm jerk quickly to the side and he heard the sound of something breaking in the distance. She turned her head for a few seconds and then returned her gaze to her husband. What Bail saw in her eyes made him wish he was there with her. He saw pure terror in her eyes; the same kind of terror that he was certain had been in his eyes just a few hours prior. "I'm sorry, I knocked a vase off the table." She explained with a voice that seemed far away.

Now Bail was really concerned. He had never seen his wife this way. She was trained from birth to resist this kind of paralyzing fear; she almost seemed unstable. "Breha, I don't think it's as bad as it first seems. Vader just happened to be in the area. Anyone caught trespassing around the Jedi temple would be of great interest to him." He hoped that he was reassuring his wife, because he certainly was not reassuring himself.

The queen looked up from the broken vase. "Not as bad as it seems? Darth Vader, who, by your own report, has all kinds of non-standard abilities that he used to murder thousands with, was alone with Leia. You think it's not that bad!"

Through the transmitter, he could almost see fire in his wife's eyes; she was very angry. In a way, he was relieved; finally, her reaction was somewhat normal. "Breha..."

"There is nothing you can say that will make me feel better about this, don't even try," the queen interrupted. "Bail, bring her home, now."

"You know that is impossible," Bail reasoned gently.

Breha's tears began to fall. "No, it isn't impossible. I'll have my handmaidens begin helping me gather my wardrobe and make the preparations. If we all work together, we can be ready to leave in a few hours. I will get there in time for the Royal Ball and I'll make an appearance at the Empire Day events the day after. It will work, you can bring Leia home."

Bail shook his head. "My love, even if you were well enough to make the trip, and I know you're not, I still would not agree to this. The fact that Leia was questioned by Lord Vader makes it necessary that she stay. Do you know how it would look if Leia was to suddenly be sent back to Alderaan? She's going to be watched."

Breha's shoulders slumped in defeat. "You're right, there's nothing we can do," she wiped her tears. "Bail, do you think he figured out that..." The queen did not finish her question, it was too dangerous to do so; but she was aware her husband knew exactly what she was asking.

"I don't think so. It would have been much worse if he did." Bail knew if Vader discovered Leia was his biological daughter, he would have never seen her again.

Breha nodded; Bail was relieved to see his wife finally calming down. "Yes, I suppose it would have been." The queen smiled in relief. "I know you're exhausted, I'll let you go on to bed." Both of them knew that they could not say any more until they were together. HoloNet transmissions were not one-hundred-percent secure and their conversation was getting to very perilous subjects.

"You should get some rest yourself." Even though it was only early evening on Alderaan and it was nearing 0100 on Coruscant, Bail could see his wife was incredibly tired. The illness and her emotional outburst had sapped Breha's energy.

"Goodnight Husband, I love you."

"I love you too." Bail returned with a smile. He then gave her a formal bow. "Goodnight, My Queen."

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Bail never slept. He stared at his bedroom ceiling while his mind replayed the events of the night, and his conversation with Breha. He wondered if he had done the right thing by telling his wife about Darth Vader's conversation with Leia. He knew she had the right to know but he feared that she would be tormented with worry while Leia was on Coruscant. _I should have waited to tell her. I should have waited until we got home._ The damage was done though, and he knew he could not undo it.

Finally, Bail decided to give up the pretense of sleep and rise from bed. For three hours, the senator busied himself in his personal office at his Coruscant residence. Like most other senators, Bail's residence was in 500 Republica. He liked working in his residential office more than the office in the consulate; the view was not nearly as depressing.

Bail tried to focus on his work but he could not stop thinking about his upcoming conversation with Leia. He was not certain if he wanted to know the details of her encounter with the Dark Lord but he knew he had to ask. From Leia's reaction the night before, he knew that her experience was frightening.

"Father, what time is it?" Leia's soft voice broke Bail out of his reverie. He looked up to find his little girl standing in front of him, with sleep tousled hair, rubbing her eyes.

"It's nearly o-eight-thirty, I was about to wake you up."

Leia's eyes widened in shock. "O-eight-thirty! I'm going to be late!" Leia knew she had a full day of public appearances scheduled.

Bail had curtailed a few of his daughter's appearances but he had not told her yet. He knew Leia would be disappointed, but he felt it was better for her safety. "You don't have to be anywhere until midday. I've cancelled your early morning activities."

Bail had been dreading Leia's reaction to this news. He knew she was looking forward to representing Alderaan in these public events. Surprisingly though, Leia took the news with only a little frown. "Is it because of what happened yesterday?"

"I am concerned about your safety. However, I must be honest, what happened last night certainly did not help matters." Bail led his daughter to the small conversation area on the other side of the room He did not want to have this conversation looking at Leia from behind his desk. "We need to talk about last night."

Leia sat down stiffly on a chair opposite her father. Bail could tell she was no more thrilled about this subject than he was. "I'm sorry about what happened," Leia interjected quickly.

The senator put up his hand to stop her. "Leia, let me begin." When she nodded in acquiescence, Bail started his questioning. "How did you get separated from your security detail?"

The look of guilt that flashed across the princess' face let him know that he was not going to like the answer to the question. He had hoped that Lord Vader's accusation that Leia was _"too curious for her own good"_ was incorrect, now Bail knew that the Dark Lord was correct. "I had to see it Father, I had to see the Temple up close."

Bail sighed, it was as he feared. He was glad, however, that Leia had not tried to lie to him. "Thank you for being honest with me."

Leia wiped a tear from her eye. "I'm so sorry, I didn't think that an abandoned building would be guarded."

"When I say you can't do something, it's not to punish you, it's to protect you. Leia, there will be times when I, or your mother, will tell you something or do things that you may not understand; but know this, we love you and it's for your own good." Bail hoped that what he was saying was sinking in to his stubborn daughter.

The princess nodded, "I understand."

_I wish I could believe that you do understand, Little One._ "We can't go back and undo what happened. I know Lord Vader spoke to you alone last night, I need you to tell me what happened."

With the mention of Vader, Leia's posture stiffened even more. "He just asked me a couple of questions, and then he left."

Bail knew there was more to it. Lord Vader was frightening, but the terror he saw in his daughter when they left Station One was not created by just a couple of questions. Something else happened, something Leia did not want to talk about. Horrific thoughts of what his daughter might have gone through filled Bail's mind. "Leia, there's more to it than that, I know. Please don't be afraid, you can tell me." He hoped his gentle tone would encourage his daughter to open up.

Leia put her head in her hands and rubbed her temples. It seemed to Bail that the memory of what happened was giving her physical pain. "Father, Lord Vader is not completely normal, is he?"

He was unsure as to how to answer the question. Bail suspected that Leia was not referring to Vader's physical appearance. He wondered if she had seen the Sith use his Force abilities. "Are you referring to his mask and armor?"

The princess shook her head, "No, not that at all." She hesitated a moment before continuing. "When I was being taken from the cell, Lieutenant Sobrel yelled at Lord Vader and asked him where he was taking me. I think that got him upset, he reached out his hand and…" Leia trailed off, unsure how to describe what happened.

"Go on Leia. What happened?"

"Lieutenant Sobrel began acting like he was choking, he was turning blue. I think Lord Vader somehow choked him, but he did not touch him. After a few seconds, he let him go."

With Leia's words, Bail's mind suddenly recalled the day that he wished he could forget. He remembered Obi-Wan Kenobi telling him and Master Yoda how Vader had, in his anger, choked Padmé with the Force alone. Apparently, this was Vader's standard way of dealing with people he viewed as insubordinate. Remembering that Leia was waiting for a response, Bail formed the best answer that he could. "There are powers and forces in this galaxy that are hard to explain, and Vader has learned to tap into them."

"Where could someone learn these powers?" Leia asked, intrigued.

_Oh no, please don't ask that._ "I don't know, Leia. I don't know much about that. All I do know, is that it is something that you should not be concerned with," Bail warned. Bail had not intended this conversation to go the way that it had. A sense of dread overwhelmed him when Leia asked where one could learn Force abilities. Inner alarm bells went off while a voice that he thought he had silenced years ago returned. _Is Leia doomed to suffer her father's fate? If she learns about the Force, would she follow Anakin's path?_ _Is evil genetic?_

Mentally shaking off the disturbing thoughts that he dare not acknowledge, Bail returned to his previous questions, hoping to get Leia off the subject of Vader's abilities. "Tell me more about what happened when Lord Vader was alone with you."

"Father, I don't know how to explain it. When he asked me those questions, I think he was…trying to get in my head."

"How do you know this?"

Leia shrugged, "I just do. I felt him in my head, somehow. It was like he was looking for something." Leia's tears began to fall, "I tried to fight it."

_Vader would mind probe a child!_ Bail knew that he should not have been surprised, this Sith had murdered thousands, including his wife, and betrayed his brothers and sisters in the Jedi order, it was not like a mind probe on a child was beneath him. He reached over and brought Leia into his arms, hoping to convey to her that she was safe and loved.

Leia wept for a few minutes while her father held her. Finally, Leia calmed down. "I've never been so scared. Why would he do that, Father, why?"

"I don't know. I'm just glad that you're safe. Leia, trust me on this, what happened last night could have gone much worse. Lord Vader is not someone to underestimate."

"He's horrible."

Bail wanted to tell Leia that she would never see him again, but he knew the realities of the situation. He knew she would probably see Vader many more times in the course of her life. He was the second in command of the Empire; she was the High Princess of an entire planet and the daughter of a senator. They would cross paths again. He had to prepare her for that. "Leia, you will see him again someday. You need to be ready for that."

The princess broke away from her father and looked in his eyes. Bail could clearly see Padmé peering back at him. In that brief moment, she was her mother's daughter. "I know that, and I will be brave." Leia then gave a lopsided smile that Bail could not help but remember as the same smile that he had seen on the many holos of Anakin Skywalker during the clone wars. "I will act like a princess at all times."

Disturbed by the resemblance, Bail covered it up with a smile of his own. "I'm certain you will, my daughter." Both parties knew that the conversation was over, and they were both relieved. Bail knew that Leia would be dealing with what happened with Vader for a while, and he vowed to do what he could to help her when she needed it. It was all he could do. "All right, we need to get ready. You have a long day ahead of you."


	10. Chapter 9

_**Chapter 9:**_

It was an exciting day for the young princess. Mindful of her aunts' instructions on maintaining royal comportment at all time, Leia did her best to stay dignified, but it was very difficult. She was almost giddy with excitement as she was taken to each public appearance and ceremony. For her, this was the first time that she had done this many public events; usually, it was her mother who represented Alderaan. Leia knew how important and serious her role was, she was a royal ambassador representing her home world, but the little girl in her could not help but find the entire process incredibly fun.

After spending most of the afternoon traveling around Coruscant, Leia was a little disappointed when she was taken back to the Alderaanian consulate. Then, the princess remembered the Royal Ball, and her disappointment faded with the promise of being able to go to the event she had been begging her parents to let her attend for the last four years.

She knew that part of the reason that she had to attend was to give the oath of fealty to the Emperor. Leia had never met the supreme leader of the Empire before and was apprehensive. She knew that her parents were not thrilled with her having to give the oath in the queen's stead. Her mother had sworn Alderaan's loyalty every year since the beginning of the Empire, and through various overheard conversations, Leia knew that it was something Breha hated doing.

"What did you think of today?" Bail asked as they entered the consulate's main entrance.

Leia smiled broadly, "I loved it! It was so much fun." Then, the princess remembered that she was there to fulfill her royal responsibility, not have fun. She put on an expression that, she hoped, showed responsibility, not childish glee. "Of course, it was an honor to represent Alderaan in any manner required of me."

Bail laughed heartily. "You know, a princess is allowed to have fun occasionally, as long as she never forgets her duties and who she represents."

Leia laughed, "Thank you Father. I will never forget."

"I know you won't."

"When does the ball begin?" Leia asked, a little more subdued, but still with a childish enthusiasm.

"O-eighteen-hundred and it will last for several hours. It will be a late night for you." Leia could hear some concern in her father's voice. "I wish you had time to rest beforehand, but you need to get ready soon."

Leia furrowed her brow in annoyance at Bail's comment. She hated being treated like a baby. "I'll be fine, I don't need a nap."

Bail laughed, "When you are older, believe me, you will wish you had more naps."

The pair made their way to one of the reception rooms off the senator's office. Bail turned to his daughter, "Leia, I need you to stay here a few minutes. I have a communication to make. Also, I'm going to get someone to help you prepare for the ball. Just wait right there."

When Bail disappeared into his office, Leia sighed in annoyance as she sat down. _Oh great, more communications. How long will he make me wait this time?_ Leia tried her best to sit still, but that task was becoming increasingly difficult with each passing moment.

After a few minutes, she heard someone enter the room. Hoping it was her father, she looked up to find a woman staring at her. "Hello."

"Hello Princess. I saw you sitting her all alone; you looked like you could use some company." The woman smiled.

The princess recognized her from the day before. "You are Ambassador Komour's wife?"

The woman walked up to the princess and gave a respectful curtsy. "Yes, I am. My name is Sabé. It is a pleasure to meet you, Princess Leia."

The princess was thrilled to have some company. Leia liked this woman immediately; she could tell she was kind. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Komour."

The former handmaiden laughed. "Princess, you can call me Sabé. I only use the title at official functions."

Leia smiled, she liked this woman even more. For some reason, she felt a connection with her. "Call me by my first name too. It's what my friends call me."

Sabé took a seat opposite of the princess. "I assume you will be attending the ball tonight?"

"Yes, I will have the honor of representing Alderaan at the Royal Ball this evening." Leia replied with a speech that she had practiced; she hoped it sounded dignified enough.

Sabé nodded, Leia could tell that she was trying to cover up a chuckle. The princess could not blame her, it probably did sound silly. "I see. I'll be attending as well, escorted by the ambassador. I've never been to the Royal Ball on Coruscant; I heard it's the social event of the year."

"I've never been to something this big before. I usually only go to smaller events on Alderaan. Have you ever been to a ball before?"

"Yes, I've been to a few of them in my lifetime."

"I'm sure Ambassador Komour's position requires him to attend many events like that."

Sabé nodded, "True, and I attended many functions when I was younger."

Leia brightened slightly at the mention of Naboo. "Oh yes, I remember you telling my Father about how you were a handmaiden to the queen of Naboo."

"Yes, I was a handmaiden for eight years during the reign of Queen Amidala."

"Last year, my tutors had me choose a planet to study, I chose Naboo." Leia informed Sabé.

Leia heard Sabé mutter something under her breath that sounded like, "of course you did," but the princess decided not to comment. Leia could tell that the woman was not very comfortable with the new turn in the conversation. The princess could see a sad look in her eyes. She wondered why the mention of her home world caused pain.

"I remember reading about Queen Amidala, but there's not much written about her. You must have been close to her, if you were a handmaiden. My mother has three handmaidens and they are her best friends."

"Yes, I was very close to her." Sabé answered quietly, seemingly deep in thought. "Maybe someday I'll tell you about her."

Leia smiled, "I'd like that." Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted by the door of Bail's office opening. When he walked out of the room, his eyes quickly found Sabé sitting there with his daughter. Leia could see that her father was uneasy. "Hello Father."

Not taking his eyes off the former handmaiden, Bail responded, "I see you found some company." The senator gave a formal bow. "Hello, Lady Komour. Thank you for looking after my daughter."

Sabé stood to greet Bail. "It was no problem, Senator Organa. I was happy for the company."

Bail looked at Sabé thoughtfully for a few more seconds before turning his gave upon Leia. "We have to go. Your gown has been prepared; I'm trying to find someone to help you get ready."

"If I may, Senator," Sabé interjected. "I can help the Princess prepare for the ball. I have experience in these matters."

"Oh please Father, can Sabé help?" Leia begged.

Bail turned back to Sabé. Looking up at him, Leia could see a strange look on her father's face. "I do not want to trouble Lady Komour with matters that are not her concern. I'm sure she has better things to do."

"It is no trouble. I would be honored." Sabé answered.

Bail sighed, "All right, thank you for your help."

"You're welcome. Come Princess, let's get you ready." Sabé took Leia's hand and the pair departed, leaving Bail behind.

* * *

"I heard about what happened last night, is Leia all right?" Mon Mothma walked up to Bail as he was walking through the Senate Complex and began speaking immediately.

"I was just on my way to your office."

"Me too, let's go together." As the senators walked purposefully down the corridors, they continued their discussion. "Is Leia all right?"

Bail turned toward the senator from Chandrila. "How did you find out about it?"

Mon laughed knowingly, "It's the most popular topic of conversation today."

_I should have known._ "Leia is shaken up, but she seems otherwise unharmed."

"That's good." Bail could tell that the other senator wanted to say more, he waited until she got the courage. "I wonder why Vader wanted to speak to her. It seems like questioning a lost child would be something he wouldn't bother with."

_Where is she going with this?_ "I don't know; Vader's reasons are usually mysterious."

"That they are." Mon stalled for a few more seconds before continuing. "I wonder if Leia being questioned by Vader had anything to do with who her father is."

Bail's head turned sharply toward the other senator. _By the Maker! _"What do you mean?"

"Bail, you are not anonymous. You have been under suspicion since the formation of the Empire, as have I. Do you think that may have had something to do with Vader's questioning?"

"I don't think so. I think he only questioned her because of where she was found."

Mon nodded as she led Bail into her office. Repeating a ritual that had begun even before the formation of the Empire, she went to her desk and brought out an electronic device. After pushing a few buttons and looking at the readout, she put the device away. "All right, no bugs detected, we're free to talk."

_At least the ones that machine can detect, we're dead if the Empire invents a new type of listening device._ Bail had never completely trusted that their personal offices were completely safe places to discuss Organization business. Bug finder equipment had made him a little more comfortable, but never completely so. In these perilous times, being free of unease was impossible, especially on Coruscant.

Instead of briefing him Organization business, like Bail expected, Senator Mothma continued their hallway conversation. "Bail, I'm very concerned about this. With everything that's going on, with terrorists threats, and with the constant surveillance that we are subjected to, it looks really bad that Leia was found in one of the most restricted areas in all of Empire."

Bail stared straight at Mon, his eyes challenging her. "What does that supposed to mean?"

"You know what I mean, Bail. Your daughter's adventures at the Jedi temple could subject you to more suspicion, and more surveillance. This could expose all of our efforts."

Bail was livid, partly because the other senator had brought his daughter into this and partly because he was not certain she was wrong. "She got lost."

"That's not what I heard. I heard that she broke away from her security detail, just to take a look at the temple. This is a dangerous habit for the daughter of a counter-revolutionary." Mon's voice got louder with each sentence. "Most likely Leia will be helping us eventually in the Organization, if things go as planned."

Bail had thought about his and his family's future in this insurrection that they were planning. He did not want Leia involved. However, with her position as the High Princess and heir to the throne, it was most likely inevitable. He hoped that the Empire would be gone by the time she came of age, but the realist in him told Bail that was wishful thinking. "That day may come." Bail began with an angry tone that few ever heard from him. "Until it comes, we will not speak of Leia as an Organization asset. As far as I'm concerned, what happened last night was absolutely none of its business. It was a family matter."

"Fine, just don't forget, people like her are our future."

"I never do, and I never will." Bail decided that he had had enough and he changed the subject. "You told me you had something else to discuss."

A little surprised by the sudden intensity she saw in Bail, Mon allowed the subject to be changed. "Yes, I got a report from a few of our informants. It seems that the Empire has not even issued an internal security alert in response to Soldiers of the Republic's threats."

"That doesn't make any sense." Security alerts were common since the formation of the Empire, and usually for things that, in Bail's opinion, did not warrant them. Now that an actual threat had been made, the Empire did not seem concerned.

"I know, and it really troubles me."

_Maybe Palpatine used his powers and determined that the group posed no real threat. _"Our informants may be wrong."

"Of course, that is always a possibility. I just think we need to be on guard."

Bail sighed loudly. "When are we not on guard?" As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted them. He did not want to sound like he did not take what she said seriously, he did. However, with everything that had happened since the day before, Bail did not want to have one more thing to worry about. "I apologize, I respect what you are saying and I agree."

Mon nodded sympathetically. "Don't worry about it. I know you've probably been through hell since last night. I know you will never let us down."

_I wish I had her faith in my leadership. _"Thank you."

Thinking the meeting was over, Bail turned to leave. "There's one more thing."

_Please, I don't think I can take 'one more thing.'_ Bail faced Mon again and asked weakly. "What is it?"

"I received some troubling news from some of our associates." That was the term that the Organization used in referring to members of the Imperial Senate that shared their views. "A few of them are saying that we should throw our support to Soldiers of the Republic."

Bail wished that he could have been surprised, but he was not. A few members of the Organization had been complaining that work to overthrow the Emperor was moving too slowly and they should begin an armed resistance. The senator from Alderaan knew that an armed resistance was most likely going to be necessary, despite his pacifist philosophies; but he knew that it was too soon for that. Impatience would get them all killed. "They're wrong; Soldiers of the Republic are now threatening civilians. We can't get involved in a terrorist organization."

"Some would say that one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter." Reacting to Bail's look of outrage on his face, Mon tried to calm the situation. "I don't think that Bail, I agree with you completely. I just wanted to let you know what is going on."

"Thank you for making me aware of the situation." Bail wanted nothing more than to end this conversation. "If you excuse me, Senator Mothma, I must be on my way." Not even waiting for a response, Bail quickly left the office.

* * *

"You're really good at this, Sabé." The princess exclaimed as she was getting her hair expertly styled by the former handmaiden.

Sabé smiled as she maneuvered another long lock of hair into position, "Thank you, Leia. I have had many years of practice." The hairstyle she was creating was very elaborate, and almost eerily similar to the styles she had seen on Padmé. It was not until Sabé was half way finished that she realized the hairstyle was so similar.

"When you were a handmaiden, you did this a lot? My mother has several handmaidens, and they all have different jobs. One of them styles her hair, another prepares her gowns, things like that."

_Yes, your mother did have many handmaidens, and I was probably one of them._ Sabé was nearly convinced that Leia was the biological daughter of Padmé Amidala. In the short time that she had spent with her, she had seen too many of the former queen's mannerisms in Leia for it to be a coincidence. "I did style Queen Amidala's hair a few times, and I've styled my daughters' hair many times as well."

"How many kids do you have? How old are they?"

Sabé noticed that Leia seemed to brighten with the knowledge that she had children. The poor girl was probably lonely for company and was excited at the possibility of a playmate her age. "I have three children, two daughters and one son. My son is nine years old, my first daughter is six years old, and my second daughter is four years old."

Leia smiled. "I'd love to meet them."

"Certainly, I know they'd love to meet you." Adding one last pin to the princess' hair, Sabé declared herself finished.

Leia was very pleased with the results. "It's so beautiful; I wish I could wear it like this every day!"

Thinking about the many times she had to wear such an elaborate hairstyle when impersonating the queen, Sabé could not help but laugh. "You'll probably have a different opinion by the end of the night. Those hairpins can get very irritating." She then added with mock seriousness. "Don't even think about taking them out before you leave the ball."

The princess laughed, "I promise; I won't.

"All right, let's get your gown on." Sabé grabbed the formal gown and began to help the princess into it. It was a very traditional white gown favored by Alderaanian royalty. She herself was going to be wearing a gown similar in style. Sabé's marriage to Jorran had made her, not only a citizen of Alderaan, but since he was a cousin to Queen Breha, a member of the royal family as well. Sabé had never regretted giving up her Naboo citizenship.

The planet had not been the same since Queen Amidala stepped down from office. After the clone wars, Naboo received much attention from her most famous native son, Emperor Palpatine. The democracy that Naboo had fought for had been replaced with control by a regional governor, answerable only to the Emperor himself. Sabé was disgusted by Naboo's appeasement. The few statements that were released from the government of Naboo were full of praise for every action of the Emperor. In Sabé's opinion, the queen, the senator, and the other representatives were all equally guilty.

Sabé understood the realities of Naboo's position. They were a peace loving people under the thumb of an oppressive dictator; Alderaan was in the same situation. However, her adopted homeworld did not go to the lengths that Naboo went to praise Palpatine's every move. The entire situation had made Sabé very bitter against the world of her birth. Despite the many requests from her family to return home for a visit, she had not stepped foot on Naboo for over six years.

Finally, Sabé finished with Leia's gown. After smoothing out a few wrinkles and making sure the fabric hung correctly, she turned the princess to the mirror. "What do you think?"

Leia gasped when she saw herself. She had worn formalwear before, but never something this beautiful. She felt almost grown up in this gown. Sabé noticed that her posture seemed to get even more regal, and she held her head higher. It was at that moment that any lingering doubts over whom Leia's mother was vanished. Wearing the elaborate gown and hairstyle, the resemblance to Padmé was striking. She carried herself with the same grace that Sabé had seen in her friend. _Oh Padmé, you would have been so proud of her. You should have been here._ She cursed the cruel fate that took Padmé from her daughter and the rest of the galaxy. _Why did she have to die?_

"Thank you so much for helping me." Leia turned from the mirror to the woman standing behind her; she frowned slightly when she saw her face. "What's wrong? You look sad."

Sabé quickly wiped the tear that threatened to fall and smiled; she did not want the princess to see her like this. "Oh nothing, you just reminded me of an old friend."

"Was it Queen Amidala?" Leia asked.

Sabé nodded, "yes, you remind me of her a great deal."

"What was she like?"

The former handmaiden wanted nothing more than to tell Leia all about Padmé, but she did not trust herself enough. She was afraid that, in her eagerness, she would blurt out something she should not. Sabé knew herself enough to know that she was not ready. "I'll tell you someday. Meanwhile, we need to get you to your father. You are going to have to be at the ball fairly soon." Sabé took the princess' hand and took her back to Senator Organa.

Afterward, Sabé returned to her and her family's living quarters to get herself ready for the ball. As she was putting on her own gown, Sabé thought back to how the senator acted when she returned Leia. She remembered that Bail seemed very uncomfortable with her being around the princess; she did not blame him at all. If she were in his position, she knew she would feel the same. Sabé understood that Senator Organa did not want his adopted daughter around someone who was so very close to her biological mother. _He doesn't need to worry; I won't tell Leia the truth. That's his job to do someday._

* * *

Leia could not stop chattering in excitement. Bail knew that the Royal Ball was something his daughter had been looking forward to for months, ever since she found out she would be attending. Even though he was dreading the event, he could not help but be amused by Leia's antics. He was glad to see her acting like the child that she was. It hurt Bail to know that, because of her position, Leia would not have much of a childhood.

He and the queen had striven to make Leia's childhood as normal as possible. However, despite the hard work, their daughter had little time to be carefree. To Bail, it seemed that Leia's trip to Coruscant had forced her to grow up even more in such a short time.

The speeder stopped in front of the entrance to the Imperial Palace where the Royal Ball was being held. The construction of the grand palace had begun not long after Palpatine's reign began. It was the senator from Naboo who proposed that it be built. The massive structure was sickeningly ornate. However, something about the building was not right. Bail could not put his finger on it, but something about the architecture seemed wrong.

At first, the senator believed that what he knew about the Emperor's true nature that colored his perceptions of the palace, but he realized he was not alone in his feelings. Children living in the surrounding buildings thought the palace was haunted and used it as a setting for many ghost stories. Everyone else, it seemed, saw nothing off-putting about it. It was even hailed in the galaxy's main architectural digest, as a "masterpiece of design which perfectly mixes modern with the traditional." Bail sometimes wondered if he and those children were the only ones who saw something wrong with the palace.

Lieutenant Sobrel disembarked the speeder first, only one security escort was allowed per party. Earlier that day, Bail had spoken a great deal to his trusted head of security regarding the incident the night before. After grilling him for two hours, demanding every detail of his confinement by the Empire, the senator was convinced that Sobrel had done all he could; and he, nor any other member of his team, could be blamed for what happened.

Senator Organa got out next, and helped his daughter get out of the vehicle. Leia, who had never seen the Imperial Palace before, stared at the massive building in front of her. "This is the palace?"

Bail nodded, "yes, I know it's very different than anything you've seen before." Leia had seen, and lived in, palaces before. However, the style favored by Alderaanian architects was free flowing and more in-tune with nature. The colors were less severe as well, usually soft white. Everything she had seen before was the complete opposite to what Leia was seeing now. The Imperial Palace was harsh and cold; the architecture could never be interpreted as free flowing by any stretch of the imagination.

"Yes, very different." Leia agreed, seemingly deep in though. Bail wondered if the palace disturbed her as much as it did him.

Bail held out his arm dramatically for his daughter to take. "Well Princess, shall we enter the ball?"

Leia giggled slightly before covering her mouth in embarrassment. She took his arm and looked up at her father. "Yes, we shall."

When Leia looked up at him, Bail was struck with how much she looked like Senator Amidala. He had seen it before, but something about her wearing the elaborate formal gown and hairstyle made the resemblance much more pronounced. He hoped no one else could see it.

With Lieutenant Sobrel following closely behind, the senator and the High Princess of Alderaan made their way into the Imperial Palace. Like every other guest, their arrival to the ball was announced as they entered the main hall. Bail could see that Leia was thrilled by this new experience, but was trying her best to hide it and remain poised. As they walked through the massive hall, Leia's smile was radiant as she took in the sights and sounds of this new experience.

Bail was less impressed, in fact, he was sickened and disturbed. Every year it was the same, the Grand Hall, with its oppressive opulence, was filled with nearly a thousand royals representing the monarchies of various planets. Only human worlds were represented; it had been that way since the first Royal Ball six years ago. It was never officially announced that only humans would be allowed into the ball, but it was plainly obvious that was the Emperor's intent; non-humans were just not invited. The first year, Palpatine's decision was surprising and controversial, but six years later, it was an accepted part of life in the Empire.

The Emperor's throne was situated in the center of the massive room. The purpose of this event was painfully obvious. Palpatine wanted to be worshiped; he wanted his underlings to show deference to him and him alone. Royal after royal went up to the hideous creature and swore their unending devotion. Most did not see anything wrong with it, and that was what frustrated Bail the most. The fealty oath was just seen as a simple matter of protocol—just words.

Bail knew that words had immense power. When someone gave the oath, they were essentially saying they were giving up any rights to govern their own worlds to the Emperor; he would be their supreme ruler. Any power they may have was at Palpatine's discretion and could be taken away at his whim. Bail was not sure what he hated the most, the oath of fealty or the fact that so many gladly went along with it because it was the "social event of the year."

He felt a sudden tension in Leia's arm that was linked to his. He looked down and saw that her bright smile was gone, replaced by wide-eyed terror. "What is it?"

Leia's eyes shut tightly, as if she did not want to see the horror that was coming. Bail did not understand, he could see nothing that might be frightening to her. Then, he heard the sound that always heralded bad things, Vader's breathing. The sound of it entered the room before he did; Bail wondered how Leia could have known that he was coming before she heard the breathing. _That's a stupid question, Organa. Of course she would know._

The crowd seemed to part when Vader walked through the room and made his way to the Emperor's side. No one wanted to be around him; no one wanted his shadow to fall on them. _Why is he here? He never comes to this event._ That confusion was echoed by many in the room. Bail heard many hushed conversations speculating as to the reason why Lord Vader had arrived.

Bail knew that Leia was absolutely terrified. He led her to the side of the grand hall and knelt down to face her. "Leia, I'm so sorry about this. I was not aware that Lord Vader would be attending."

The princess opened her eyes and took a deep breath. "I know Father, I'll be fine."

Bail glanced over to the throne and saw Vader standing beside Palpatine. He wanted to take his precious daughter away from all of this, but it was impossible. He turned back to Leia, and took her small hands in his. "I'm sorry, but we have to go up to the Emperor now."

Leia nodded, "I know, I can do this."

"It will be very quick, just say the oath and the Emperor will most likely dismiss you immediately." Bail wondered if it was Leia that he was re-assuring or himself.

"I know, Mother and I practiced before we left." Leia put on a resolved look that Bail had identified as her "brave face," one that was the exact duplicate of a look he had seen on Senator Amidala on many occasions. "I'm ready."

With great reluctance, Bail escorted Leia to the center of the room and entered the line of those wishing to give their oath. Bail looked down and noticed Leia looking intently at something in front of her. He looked up to see Vader staring in her direction, and Leia was staring right back. Bail was proud of the princess for not letting herself be intimidated by Vader; very few people looked directly at the Dark Lord. _What is Vader looking for? Does he see an echo of his dead wife? Does he see a bit of his former self?_ Knowing that he had to be careful of his thoughts while in the presence of the Sith Lords, he forced his mind off that subject.

The line moved too quickly for Bail's taste, it was now Leia's turn. He stopped about fifteen feet from the throne and Leia released her arm from his. Only the one giving the oath was allowed to approach the throne; he as the escort would have to remain behind. _Maker, give her strength._

Leia looked one last time at Bail and smiled, she was determined to be brave. She then took the short walk to the throne and approached the two Sith Lords alone.


	11. Chapter 10

_Author's Note: This chapter marks the end of act one. I know that there has been alot of talking lately, and not much in the way of action, but will be heating up soon as events unfold. Thank you so much for sticking with me, I hope you will not be dissappointed. _

_**  
Chapter 10:**_

Vader hated aristocrats; he had hated them long before he took up the mantle of Sith Lord. It was one of the few things that Darth Vader and Anakin Skywalker had in common. During the final years of the Republic, the aristocrats continued to go to parties wearing ridiculous costumes that cost more than the yearly wages of the average Outer Rim family. While billions were dying in the Clone War, most of them sat around discussing how unfortunate it was that their investments had lost so much money.

Now that the war was over and the Republic was dead, the galaxy's human aristocrats could enjoy socializing again with their own kind. Vader almost found it amusing how quickly anti-alien sentiment had grown in the galaxy. No matter how much power the Emperor had, his master could not change the hearts and minds of everyone in the galaxy.

Xenophobia, among the human inhabitants, was the old Republic's dirty little secret. No matter how enlightened the human worlds of the Republic claimed to be, there was an underlying feeling of superiority and mistrust of non-humans; Darth Sidious had expertly tapped into it.

In the last eight years, non-humans had been increasingly marginalized and taken out of important positions. Anti-alien propaganda filled the HoloNet and non-human children were even beginning to be put in separate public schools. Vader knew why his master had done this. One reason was that Sidious truly believed in the superiority of humans and did not trust the Empire's most important positions to those he felt were inferior.

However, that was not the main reason why he had done this. Vader believed the true purpose was that if the subjects of the Empire were too busy worrying about some vague threat from non-humans, they would be less likely to look too closely at the actions of their respected, and very human, Emperor.

It was a genius plan; Vader had to admire his master's ability to manipulate beings and events to his advantage. Of course, he had been manipulated as well, probably the most manipulated. Sidious had even said several times that Vader was his "masterpiece," and that he had been created as an artist creates a sculpture. Like the original lump of clay that bears little resemblance to the finished work, Darth Vader bore little resemblance to the man he once was. Sidious spent thirteen years molding and shaping Anakin Skywalker into Darth Vader, and the fires of Mustafar had been the kiln that hardened him into that shape forever.

It angered Vader to know that he was so manipulated, that was the reason why his master had told him. Sidious knew that his hate and rage would fuel him into an even more effective enforcer of his will. Hate was all he knew. Like every Sith apprentice, his thoughts were overwhelmed with a desire to overthrow his master and take the power for himself—power that he earned and deserved. His master had not paid the price that he had. He would wait, though, wait until the time was right. He would wait until he had his own apprentice.

It was ironic, Anakin Skywalker had no patience, but Darth Vader had learned patience. The Sith had more patience than the young Jedi that he had been not so long ago. The injuries Kenobi inflicted on him had forced him to wait. He did not have the strength he had before Mustafar, an apprentice of his own would be key to destroying Sidious.

Until then, he would be forced to serve his master and be at his side; and tonight he would physically be at his master's side at the ball. Events like the Royal Ball, where the aristocrats could mingle and revel in their self-delusional superiority, were things that Vader tried to avoid. He was not at all interested in the fealty oath. His master believed in the symbolic value of the oath; he reveled in seeing these lesser beings grovel at his feet.

Vader did not care for symbolism. When he took his rightful place as Emperor, there would be no need for oaths; and certainly no Royal Balls. All would obey him, and any who showed even the slightest hint of rebellion would be killed along with their families. That was the way to run an Empire.

Sidious kept the illusion of democracy alive with the Imperial Senate. Vader decided long ago that would be the first thing he would get rid of when he became Emperor; the second would be the Jedi Temple. All remnants of the corrupt and decadent Republic would be removed from the face of history.

It was his ambition that brought Lord Vader to the Royal Ball. He had avoided it since its inception, but this night he had a purpose. Princess Leia Organa was going to be attending and giving the fealty oath as the Royal Representative of Alderaan. His mind had been on the girl since the previous night. She was a wellspring of untapped potential--potential he could exploit when the time was right.

That left Vader with a problem, if he could sense the potential in this girl, so could his master. It was a risk that he could not afford to take. Force sensitive children were routinely taken by Palpatine and either killed or trained as assassins. Leia Organa's position may save her from this fate but it was a risk that the Sith apprentice could not afford to take. If she was to be his apprentice someday, he could not let her be taken by Palpatine and killed or brainwashed to do his will alone.

He would have to dampen her Force signature while she was at the ball, something he would have to be present to be able to accomplish. It was extremely risky, Darth Sidious was incredibly powerful. His ability to foresee events through the Force was amazing. However, in the eight years that Vader had served him, he had learned that Sidious was not omniscient. Despite his claims, he did not know everything. If the Force was with him, he would be able to hide the girl's blazing signature.

Vader had been in the Imperial Palace for hours, meditating and waiting for the arrival of Leia and preparing for what he had to do. It was no small feat and it required much preparation. He remembered her courage in facing him the previous night, it was impressive. She could be molded into a very powerful Sith someday. There was something about the girl that he found familiar somehow. When she was staring at him, Vader felt a slight sense of deja-vu; it disturbed him.

After hours of preparation, Vader was finally ready. He ordered one of the guards on the front gate to notify him when the Organas arrived. When the guard notified him, Vader immediately sought out the princess' Force signature. It did not take him long to find it. He did not think that his master would find it first. Sidious was not actively searching out a specific Force signature like he was. The Sith apprentice had time to dampen it quickly before the girl got too close to the Emperor. Reaching out, Vader covered the princess' signature with his own. If the Force was with him, all the Emperor would sense would be Vader's signature.

Now that the princess had arrived, it was time for Vader to make his appearance. Lord Sidious knew that he was going to be there. To explain his unusual Royal Ball attendance, the apprentice had told his master that he had heard rumors of disloyal royals and wanted to be beside him during the night to "show the absolute and unified power of the Empire." Sidious did not comment on his unusual behavior, which troubled Vader slightly.

The Dark Lord heard muffled gasps as he entered the grand hall. The sea of aristocrats parted as he made his way to the Emperor's throne. He saw Organa take Leia to the side of the room to speak with her. No doubt, the senator believed his daughter was afraid of Vader and wanted to shield her from the traumatic experience of seeing him again. The Sith apprentice knew that Leia Organa was afraid of him, but he also knew the girl was incredibly strong and would not give into that fear.

As the two Organas made their way to the throne, Vader stared at the young girl. She was handling herself much better than the senator was. He was barely holding himself together while, even at such a young age, the princess was the epitome of grace and strength. It was a quality that Vader had not seen in a while, not since..._Padmé._

Vader's anger overwhelmed him. _Why must I think of her now?_ Over the years, he had tried not to think about his dead wife. Occasionally, flashes of memories would overtake him. He hated being reminded of her, it was too much for him to handle.

The last time he had seen someone that reminded him of his beloved was two years ago. He was on Quellor, capturing a group of underground, anti-Imperial journalists and trying to discover who in the planetary government was aiding them. After the governing council had all refused to admit who in their group had committed treason, all of them were to be executed one at a time until someone confessed.

After six of the ten members of the council had been cut in half by Vader's lightsaber, the Lieutenant Governor finally confessed to aiding the dissidents and begged for mercy for his innocent colleagues. After ordering the traitor to be taken for further interrogation, the Sith apprentice had continued with the executions. An Imperial governor was then installed in their place.

After the operation was concluded, Vader was returning to his shuttle. He spotted a young woman who looked very much like his dead wife from a distance. Suddenly, an unfamiliar emotion welled up inside him, hope. Maybe Sidious was wrong? Maybe he lied? Forgoing any kind of Sith or Imperial decorum, Vader desperately called out Padmé's name and ran to the woman. When he reached her, Vader grabbed her arm and turned her around to face him.

The woman who gazed back at him in terror was not Padmé, not even close. The pain he felt in seeing the unfamiliar face was worse than anything Kenobi did to him on Mustafar. Enraged by his loss of control, Vader poured his pain and anger into the furnace that fueled his connection to the Dark Side. He then ordered the girl arrested on some trumped up charge; and the woman, whose only crime was looking somewhat like a Sith Lord's dead wife, never saw the next day.

Somehow, Princess Leia Organa had reminded Vader of Padmé. He did not understand it; the princess was only a child. It was her bearing that he noticed first; he wondered how he had missed it the night before when he was questioning her. Vader decided that it must have been the formalwear and the elaborate hairstyle, things he always associated with Padmé.

Also, seeing the girl bravely step up to the most powerful beings in the entire galaxy with her head held high, reminded him of his wife. If she were here now, that would be the way she would be acting. Then Vader corrected himself. _If Padmé was here, she would be at my side; not bowing to Sidious. Damn you Kenobi, you took her from me!_

Finally, it was the princess' turn to say her fealty oath. Vader watched as Senator Organa reluctantly let his daughter go and remained back while she approached the throne. He made certain the shield that covered the princess' Force signature was still held firmly in place; if his master was going to sense anything from her, it would be now. Because of the concentration required to keep the shield over the girl, Vader could not risk a mind link with her. It was unfortunate; he wanted to know what his possible future apprentice was thinking.

Leia gracefully knelt down on one knee an uttered Alderaan's oath of fealty: "I vow loyalty on behalf of my world and its inhabitants. I faithfully and gladly entrust my planet, its resources, and its people into your wise hands for protection. The Empire's allies will be my allies and its foes will be my foes, as long as I shall live."

Usually, when someone said the oath, the Emperor would not even look down at them as they were saying it; most of the time he would barely acknowledge their presence; a flick of his wrist gesturing them away being the royal's only clue that the Emperor had even heard them. Vader waited for his master to dismiss the girl; but to his surprise, Sidious looked down at the kneeling princess.

The Sith master continued to stare at the girl for what seemed like an eternity. Vader wished that he could see Sidious' expression to help judge his intent, but the face concealing cowl he wore prevented that. The apprentice made certain his shields had not been breached, he would have known it if they had.

"You are the High Princess of Alderaan." It was not a question, Lord Sidious knew exactly who was here; there were no surprises.

Princess Leia looked up at the Emperor in shock; clearly, she had not been expecting him to speak to her. She was so thrown off balance that she had forgotten that protocol dictated no one giving the oath was to look directly at the Emperor, but keep their eyes downcast as a sign of submission. It certainly was not an offence the girl would be arrested for, but it was considered to be "bad taste" among the members of Imperial high society.

Remembering the rules she was given, Leia quickly looked down again. "Yes, My Lord."

"Isn't it custom that the highest ranking monarch be the one who represents their homeworld at this occasion? Where is the Queen?"

Even through the heavy Force shield he had constructed, Vader could sense the princess' unease slipping through the cracks. "My Lord, she is on Alderaan. Her illness prevented her from traveling, I came in her stead."

"That is unfortunate," Vader noticed that his master had changed the modulation of his voice. Before, the tone was that of an uninterested monarch; it was now that of a doting grandfather.

_So, he's decided to play Palpatine for a while._ Vader remembered hearing this voice for years when Sidious was just a trusted friend and confidante; it was the voice he used when he wanted to manipulate someone.

"Stand up, my girl," he offered with a smile evident in his voice.

Hesitantly, the princess stood up and faced the Emperor. Already, this had caused not a small reaction by the crowd. Vader could hear the shocked aristocrats whispering to each other. Most were approving of the Emperor's gesture and found it very magnanimous of him that he would befriend the girl with the terminally ill mother; Queen Breha's condition was well known among Royal circles. Others, however, were envious of the attention Princess Leia was receiving. They had spent the last eight years laboring for just a small crumb of acknowledgment from the Emperor; this little girl had done nothing to earn such recognition.

Vader wondered why his master was doing this. It may be only to score a few political points; to look like a caring ruler. Sidious was a master politician, after all. He knew how to manipulate the masses. Appearing to be the compassionate fatherly type was a tactic that he had used with much success his entire career.

"For one so young, you are representing your world with much grace. Alderaan is a valued member of the Empire, and I know it will continue to be as long as it has wise leaders. I know that is something you will never forget; I see that, when the time comes, you will lead your people well."

_I know it will continue to be as long as it has wise leaders._ Vader had to admit, Sidious was an excellent wordsmith; only he could weave a subtle threat into a compliment. The Sith apprentice wondered if he was directing that comment to Bail Organa or all the royals watching.

"Thank you, My Lord." Leia answered, her eyes were not downcast this time; she was staring directly into Sidious' wrinkled and scarred visage.

"You may go, my girl; enjoy the rest of the ball. When you get home, please give my regards to Queen Breha."

Vader heard a barely audible sigh of relief coming from Bail Organa's direction as the girl walked back to him and they moved away from the throne. He knew that Organa was a reluctant supporter of the Empire, and possibly a traitor. The Sith apprentice longed for the day when his master would give him the authority to weed out traitors within the Senate using significant measures. _Of course, when I become Emperor, there will be no Senate, so treason within its walls will not be an issue._

* * *

Moff Tarkin stood at the side of the Grand Hall to watch the show. He had always loved this event; it amused him greatly to watch the other aristocrats fall all over themselves to please the Emperor in hopes of gaining a few more scraps of power. Of course, Tarkin was also an aristocrat; his family was one of the most powerful on his home planet of Eriadu. 

However, Tarkin did not consider himself a part of this group of sycophants. Their positions were given to them as a consequence of their birth. He, on the other hand, had lost his father's favor at a young age and had worked continually to regain the status he knew he deserved. Finally, his hard work had paid off and he was given the title of Moff and entrusted with constructing the Emperor's secret project.

Tarkin knew, however, that one must be proactive to remain in the Emperor's good graces. He had taken it upon himself to expose Senator Organa's secret treason. Over the last two days, he had been trying to gather information. The senator was very skilled in hiding his dealings; as of yet, very little had been discovered.

He watched as Organa and his daughter made their way to the Emperor. Tarkin wondered how he will react when a traitor within the Senate is revealed. He knew that Emperor Palpatine will be very grateful and may, hopefully, entrust more territory to him. The governor thought about the rest of the aristocrats in the room. _That is the difference between them and me. They show their loyalty with mere words; I show mine by actions. I will be rewarded far more than them. _

Tarkin knew that his time on Coruscant was running out and he would have to return to his protectorate in a few days. He would not be able to devote his full energy to exposing Organa once he returned. If he was going to gather any usable information on the Senator from Alderaan, it would have to be soon.

Fortunately, fate seemed to have smiled upon the Moff. His careful digging had produced the name of someone trusted within the Alderaan consulate that was willing to part with some information in exchange for credits and a few other favors. Tarkin had interviewed this person earlier in the day and was confident this was the key to exposing Organa's treasonous activities. Moff Tarkin now had a spy in place, working only for him.

* * *

After a long night, the social event of the year had concluded. _It's finally over._ Bail did not think he had ever felt so relieved. As they were walking toward the speeder, he thought about the unexpected and disturbing turn events had taken. _I can't believe he actually spoke to her._ It was very unusual for the Emperor to speak to anyone during the ball. Occasionally, he would say a few words to some selected royals but he would never give them as much attention he gave to Leia. 

Bail knew his conversation with Leia would be the talk of society. The fact that he asked her to stand up in his presence was even more unusual. In the years that he had been forced to endure this event, the senator had never seen that happen. The entire night had been unusual; Vader's arrival and the Emperor singling Leia out had turned Bail into a nervous wreck. He was so glad that it was finally over.

"Are you all right Father?" Leia asked, seeming concerned about Bail's distant behavior.

He put a reassuring smile on his face and looked down at his daughter. "I'm fine; I'm just thinking." Bail hoped that Leia did not ask what he was thinking about. "What did you think of the Emperor?"

Leia shrugged, "I don't know, he seems strange."

Bail nodded, not entirely certain what she meant. "Strange? Do you mean his face?"

"That's part of it, I guess." Leia paused a moment, not really sure how to continue. "His face is like that because of the Jedi assassination attempt?"

Bail groaned inwardly, that was the official story in the Imperial approved version of history. They had tried to shield Leia from such propaganda, but it was impossible to completely keep it from her. "I was not there, that is what the Emperor reported."

Leia nodded, "Was he lying?"

_No, he was not, at least from his point of view. _The senator wondered why Leia would question what she had read from the official history. He was glad that she was thinking for herself, but he wondered why she suddenly seemed skeptical. "Like I said, I was not there. Why are you asking this?"

"I don't know, I was just asking." Leia then changed the subject. "I'm glad that Sabé was there. Although, I did not see her much."

_Ah yes, the handmaiden, please don't remind me._ "You seem to have become quick friends with Lady Komour."

Leia smiled broadly, "Sabé is the best, she's from Naboo and was the handmaiden of their most famous ruler, Queen Amidala. She is so nice, and she does hair beautifully! Father, I would love to go to Naboo. Can we go someday?"

_Over my dead body! There's no way you are setting foot on that world!_ "I don't know, maybe someday." Bail hated lying to Leia, but he knew he could not handle a confrontation at this moment. "What did Lady Komour tell you about Naboo and Queen Amidala?"

"She talked about her duties. I asked her about Queen Amidala but she did not have time to tell me about her."

_Thank the Maker!_ The pair made their way to the speeder. Lieutenant Sobrel, who had been shadowing them the entire night, opened the speeder door and let them in. Leia looked really exhausted, and Bail knew that she would probably fall asleep on their way back to his residence.

He thought about Sabé Komour, this woman was dangerous. He was thankful that she did not have a chance to fill Leia's head with stories about Padmé. A sudden fear gripped the senator. He remembered that she did seem very eager to help Leia dress for the ball. _What if she knows? What if she can see the resemblance? _Lady Komour knew Padmé better than almost anyone. They had been best friends since they were children.

Bail knew that he had to do something about this; he would have to speak with Lady Komour. He dreaded it, but it was necessary.

* * *

He knew he must be careful, everything depended on him. The others in his small circle did not want him to take this risk, but he could not leave this duty to anyone else. He planned the operation; he must see it through to the end. 

He never thought he would die on Coruscant. He believed he would die in his bed, surrounded by children and grandchildren, on his home planet. That was not to be, he would now die on this technological monstrosity of a planet, probably gunned down by stormtroopers; and that was only if he was really lucky.

The Jedi believed that there was an all-powerful Force controlling everything. If that was true, if the Force has a will, then it is cruel. How could this have been allowed to happen? How could the "will of the Force" be the destruction of democracy and the installation of a brutal totalitarian regime? So many had died and he knew it was only beginning.

He knew history would probably condemn what he was planning to do. The subjects of the Empire were too comfortable, too content to live in bondage; and he hated them for it. He hated their apathy; and if a bunch of those celebrating the beginning of their slavery were killed, he was not going to shed a tear.

At one time, hate did not rule his heart; but that was before the darkness fell upon the galaxy. He was once well respected and trusted. He was the head of security for the Senator; that was before he failed to protect her. _I never should have let her go. _

Typho had spent the last eight years seeking revenge for the loss of Senator Amidala and the Republic he loved. Of course, he hated the Emperor and Vader, but he hated the people that allowed this dictatorship to form in the first place. A government was just a reflection of its people. If the government was corrupt, greedy, and violent then it stood to reason that the people were the same way.

Palpatine was allowed to declare himself Emperor because the people were tired of governing themselves. They no longer wanted the responsibility so they put all the decisions upon one man; democracy was now passé and out of style like last year's fashions. Typho set his last charges and made sure the explosives were in place in preparation for the next day. _They will pay; they will pay for allowing this to happen._


	12. Chapter 11

_**Chapter 11:**_

"Lady Komour, please come in and sit down." When Bail had returned to his residence the previous night, the first thing he did was send a request for an early morning appointment to Sabé Komour. He wanted to know what she was telling Leia about Naboo. It was a conversation the senator dreaded, and he was not certain how he was supposed to tell Lady Komour not to speak of Senator Amidala or her home planet without making her too suspicious. Bail knew that the conversation was not going to be pleasant, but for the sake of Leia, it was something he had to do.

Sabé entered Bail's office and nervously sat down. "Senator Organa, I received the appointment request early this morning. I must admit, I'm a little puzzled."

Bail put on his political face, the same expression he used when he addressed the Senate. He wanted to give the meeting the feeling of informality to make Sabé more comfortable, but he also wanted to make it clear that certain subjects were off limits. "I apologize for the short notice, but an issue has come up that I feel we should discuss."

"Senator, I do not understand; if the issue is in regards to my husband's position, shouldn't he be here to discuss it?"

The senator could tell that, while he was wearing his best political expression, Sabé was doing the same. Bail had to marvel at the Naboo political training. Since Sabé had impersonated the queen, she also had to learn the same techniques Padmé had been taught. "This has nothing to do with Ambassador Komour; he is doing a great job and is a great asset to the consulate. What I am here to discuss is my daughter."

Sabé seemed even more confused by the direction this conversation was going; Bail could tell that she did not expect this. "What about Princess Leia?"

Bail began gently, "I first want to thank you for befriending her. Leia goes on and on about how much she likes you and how she loved having you help her prepare for last night's ball. This trip has been difficult for my daughter and I want to thank you for making it easier on her."

Sabé smiled broadly. "Thank you very much. The princess is delightful to be around; she's so full of life. It was my pleasure to help her last night."

"You and she seem to get along very well." Bail knew he had to move on to the real reason he called her; there had been enough stalling. "However, I do have some concerns. Leia has told me that you and her spoke about your former position on Naboo."

Sabé's smile disappeared. "She asked me about my duties when I was handmaiden to Queen Amidala. If I may ask, Senator Organa, why would that be a concern?"

"My Lady, with your position, I know you are well aware of the political realities. Because of Naboo's history, especially the history of its most famous queen and senator, anything regarding that world is constantly under suspicion."

Forgetting her position for a moment, Sabé scoffed loudly. "Naboo constantly bends over backward to show it's loyalty to the Empire, its current senator makes certain of that. I don't believe it's under as much suspicion as you think, Senator Organa."

Bail understood what Sabé was speaking of; the senator of Naboo was one of the most vocal Palpatine supporters in the entire Senate. He could see the anger in Sabé's eyes when she spoke of Naboo's current political state. He knew if he was in her position, he would probably feel the same. "My Lady, speaking of Naboo's former queen is dangerous; she was not a supporter of Palpatine. I need to ask you not to discuss with Leia anything regarding your former employer."

The senator could tell that Sabé was getting angry, and her training was only hiding so much. "May I speak freely, Senator Organa?"

Bail nodded, he was tiring of this forced politeness between them, "of course."

"Why are you so afraid of Padmé Amidala? You won't even say her name."

It was true; Padmé's name was not something Bail liked to say out loud. He told himself it was because of the risk of discussing the dead wife of Darth Vader aloud, but the senator knew that was not the entire truth. Every time he said Padmé's name aloud, it was a reminder that Leia was not his and Breha's child, but the daughter of the former queen and the former senator of Naboo.

It also reminded Bail of an even more horrible fact; Leia was the child of Darth Vader. "I'm afraid of what may happen if Leia gets too curious and begins talking about her; it may attract the attention of certain unfriendly members of the government."

Sabé stood up, "Senator, if I may be frank, I don't believe that is the entire truth. There is another reason."

Bail was getting angry; his carefully crafted emotional detachment was being chipped away. The senator stood to his full height, and dwarfed the petite former handmaiden. "Your opinion on this matter is of no consequence; you will not discuss...Senator Amidala with my daughter."

The senator could tell that his ultimatum had shocked Sabé. _Please understand, don't make me explain any further._ The former handmaiden bowed her head slightly, "Senator, I will respect your wishes, you know more about the situation than I do."

Bail's voice returned to its calm and even tone. "Thank you very much. Leia has become quite fond of you. She has even mentioned that she wants to meet your children since they are her age; she has been missing the company of other children." Bail was relieved that Sabé had backed down. Even so, he could not shake the feeling that there was something she was not telling him. "I do not want this issue to keep my daughter from valuable time with children her own age."

"I do not want that either, I'm sure my children will enjoy playing with your daughter. I have the feeling that Princess Leia gets little time to be a child."

"That is true, Lady Komour," the senator answered sadly. "It is the reality of her position and the galaxy we live in."

Sabé nodded, "Senator, I would like to apologize for my outburst. I guess I still feel like I need to defend Padmé."

"I understand completely; your loyalty to her is inspiring. I'm glad you are a citizen of Alderaan now; you embody all that is good about our world." Bail was giving political responses to hide his lingering doubts about this woman.

Sabé smiled, as if she knew exactly what the senator was doing. "I promise you, as I served and protected Padmé, I will do the same with Princess Leia."

If the former handmaiden wanted to put Bail's mind at ease with her statement, it had the opposite effect. _Why would she want to protect Leia like she did Padmé? Is she wanting to serve Leia the way she served...her mother? By the Maker! Does she know?_ "Thank you, I appreciate it very much." Even though the senator's inner turmoil was immense, he called on all his political training to hide it. "I'm certain you have much to do today; I should let you go."

"Yes, thank you very much Senator." With a respectful curtsey, the former handmaiden quickly exited the office, leaving an even more concerned senator with his tumultuous thoughts.

* * *

Coruscant was buzzing with excitement; it seemed like the entire planet's massive population was on the streets celebrating. From every direction, Leia could see that the walkways and ramps of the pedestrian areas were covered with beings. Every veranda was filled as well; the princess had never seen this many people. It was amazing to her that this scene was being repeated throughout the entire city-planet. Residents and visitors alike came together to celebrate the formation of the Empire. 

That was at least what the Imperial Authorities sold the event to be. Leia knew that her father was not happy to be there, and she felt really strange about the event as well. Something was off and she could not tell what it was. As the princess was taken from one place to the next, she made a point to look for non-humans in the crowd. She knew Coruscant had a large non-human population, but she was hard pressed to find one in the area she was in.

Along with the rest of the royals and other government officials, Leia was watching the celebration from the government district, right outside the Senate Complex. This area was considered one of the most upscale neighborhoods in all of the capitol, and it's proximity to the Imperial Palace and the Senate afforded it the most security.

"What's wrong?" Bail had noticed Leia looking around rather intently.

"Oh nothing," Leia began. "It's just that I've been looking around and all I see are humans. I thought Coruscant had a large alien population."

Bail frowned and shook his head, "Leia, non-humans are not allowed in this area. They have been relocated to other parts of Coruscant."

Leia was aware of the regulation on Coruscant that aliens were to live in designated areas. The official reasoning behind it was to promote "cultural unity" among the various races. Various crimes were blamed on racial violence and the relocation was aimed to prevent it; the Emperor said in one of his speeches that the various races on Coruscant were to be "separate but equal." Leia did not agree with the Emperor's reasoning; humans and non-humans had lived and worked together in peace for generations.

Leia did not know that non-humans were not just forbidden to live in certain sectors but they were not even allowed to visit unless they had a government issued pass. "Why are they not even allowed to visit?" Leia asked, puzzled.

"It was the Emperor's wish." Her father's minimal response really did not surprise the princess. She was used to certain subjects being glossed over; however, during this trip he had done more of that and it was beginning to get on Leia's nerves. She tried to focus on the celebration and her duty as royal representative but annoyance at her father was taking over her thoughts.

It was not only that Bail would not tell her things, but he had seemed really distant since they had arrived on Coruscant. Leia knew her father had an important job and many duties to perform, but it was not like he was spending little time with her. For most of her trip, Bail had been by her side the entire time.

Leia could tell, while her father was physically there, that he was distant; it was almost like his mind was consumed by something. It was worse the night before, during the ball. After she said her oath to the Emperor, it seemed like her father was barely paying attention to her or anything else around him. The few times he did look at her, he appeared fearful. _Why would he look at me and be afraid?_

The princess knew that her trip to the capitol had not gone the way Bail expected. Her detainment by the soldiers and especially the horrible questioning by Lord Vader was definitely not something she expected either. Nothing about this trip had gone the way it was supposed to.

Leia thought about the Royal ball the night before. She was told by her mother that when she said the oath, the Emperor would dismiss her immediately without a word. For some reason, he spoke to her, he even told her to stand in his presence. Leia remembered feeling like it was years before he finally dismissed her.

It was strange, usually the princess would have been aware of the thousands of eyes that were on her but she was not. In that brief span of time, all she was aware of was the Emperor—his eyes and his voice. She found herself feeling almost like she was being sucked in as she felt everything and everyone around her melt away.

Leia knew that her parents were not supporters of the Emperor, and she had heard many things throughout her eight years that made her wary of him. During her encounter with him, when all thoughts and distractions were removed, for some reason, Leia felt that she could trust the Emperor. In the hours since, the princess' previous opinion of him returned as she remembered all the things wrong with the Empire. However, for that brief moment, Emperor Palpatine seemed like the wisest being in the entire galaxy.

* * *

The time for action was coming; Typho knew the charges were set to go off in only one hour. Any doubts he might have had regarding this operation were shoved away as he focused on why he was doing this. Even if he wanted to stop the operation, the timer was set and it could not be interrupted. There was no turning back; history was about to be made. 

The rest of his compatriots would condemn him, he understood that; this was not the plan they had agreed to before he left for Coruscant. They never would have agreed to this; they would have said it was too risky or it would cost too many innocent civilian lives. _There are no innocent civilians on Coruscant._

From his position, Typho would be able to see the explosion but not be in any danger from it. He momentarily considered being in the square when it went off; it certainly would have been a quicker and much less painful death than the Empire was sure to come up with if they caught up with him. However, he wanted them to catch him. He wanted to be able to look at the man who destroyed his wife and everything he believed in.

_I can't think about her now._ Every time Typho thought about his wife and her unjust death, rage overtook him. One year after the beginning of the Emperor's reign, Typho had left Naboo in disgust. He worked as a security consultant for various planetary governments and corporations throughout what was once known as the Republic. He made a very good living, Typho's experience as chief of security for the senator from Naboo made his skills very valuable. He traveled from planet to planet, refusing to put down roots. No matter where he went, he did not feel at home.

It all changed five years ago when Typho went to Quellor. He was working for a large system-wide business consortium, and it seemed like a typical job, until he met Adira. She worked in the data receiving and processing office of the consortium he was temporarily working for. She captivated his heart the instant Typho saw her beautiful face.

Their courtship was quick; in only six months he asked her to marry him. He still remembered the tears of joy in her piercing green eyes when she said yes. When they got engaged to be married, Typho accepted a permanent position with the consortium that they had been begging him to take for months.

Adira's family was thrilled by the engagement; they took Typho into their hearts almost immediately. Their wedding was the happiest day of his life; he was able to forget, for a while, the dictatorship that ruled them. He was finally happy, he had a loving wife and was a part of her large extended family; something he never had before. His biological family was quite small and not very close; Typho enjoyed going to family picnics and reunions with Adira.

Two years ago, the unthinkable happened. Adira had just told him that she was expecting their first child; they were thrilled. She was only three months along but they were already preparing the nursery. Typho had actually begun building the crib the day after Adira told him the news; he wanted the baby to have a handmade crib built in the Naboo style.

Only one week after Adira told him the happy news, his world crashed down upon him. The Quellor governing council had somehow run afoul of the Empire and Vader was sent. The entire planet was in turmoil when the members of the council were accused of treason and sentenced to death; stormtroopers were sent in to subjugate the population as a governor who answered to the Emperor alone was installed.

Typho had been working in the capitol on the first day of the planet's complete takeover by the Empire. Adira, concerned for her husband, traveled the 200 kilometer distance from their house to the capitol city to find him. For reasons he still did not understand, his precious wife was arrested for treason. The Imperials claimed that she had resisted arrest and pulled a blaster on one of the soldiers, she and their unborn child were killed instantly.

Typho's rage overwhelmed him; all of his suppressed hatred for the Empire returned. He knew that Vader was involved in Adira's death; a few eyewitnesses claimed that they had seen him run up to Adira, grab her arm, and turn her around. After a few seconds, he had demanded she be taken into custody. There was no blaster, no resisting arrest, and his wife certainly was no traitor; it was all a lie.

He remembered his wife's funeral vividly. She was dressed in her finest gown, with her long, dark hair curled around her. The custom was to give the grieving family of the deceased one more look at their loved one before the cremation. Typho wished he had never seen her like that. While she was dressed beautifully, she was lifeless and cold; it was not the woman he fell in love with, she was gone. Instead of his last memory of his wife being her kiss goodbye before he left for the capitol, his last memory of Adira would be her dead body laid out on a platform.

After the funeral, Adira's family had begged Typho to stay on Quellor; they had accepted him into their family and did not want to see him leave. Even though a part of him wanted to, he could not stay; he could not involve Adira's family in what he had to do.

Typho left Quellor with two goals in mind, take revenge on Vader and those who had allowed the brutal regime that killed his wife. He discovered and joined Soldier's of the Republic and helped them become more organized and focused. This was how he was going to take revenge.

After the operation was over, Typho knew he would be found, tortured, and killed. However, he wanted to see the creature that had his wife killed before the execution, Vader. He wanted to look that monster in his masked face; then he would get his ultimate revenge.

In his travels, Typho had been made aware of various devices that could do much damage; he had become an expert on munitions. Ever since Adira's death, he had become interested in devices which destroyed electronic components. Vader was mostly machine; destroying the electronic components of his suit would destroy him.

On Malastare, Typho had bought a small, but incredibly powerful electro-magnetic pulse generator which was the size of the tip of his index finger. It was an ingenious piece of machinery which had cost him a small fortune and could only be used once. It was small enough to hide on his body, and the scanners used by the Imperial military could not detect it. Seeing as how Typho was about to commit a crime of great magnitude in the eyes of the Imperials, he knew Vader would probably interrogate him personally, it would be then when he would destroy the creature.

The plan was still a long-shot, but it was the one most likely to achieve his goals—the revenge on the ones who let democracy be swept away because it was no longer in fashion, and revenge on the creature who murdered his wife and child. Typho knew he would die seconds after activating the EMP pulse, but he would die knowing his loved ones were avenged.

* * *

Bail was glad the day was coming to a close; soon another Empire Day would be at an end. The day after tomorrow, he would take Leia home where she belonged; he could not wait to get on the Tantive and return to Alderaan. 

So far, it had been a typical Empire Day, with all the celebrations of the Empire's whitewashed oppression. Holo-banners showing the Emperor's hooded form were being displayed, streamers were flying from every window, and children ran around pretending they were soldiers shooting at renegade Jedi.

It seemed like everything was going well. Despite Soldiers of the Republic threats, it seemed that they had either decided not to do anything or they were intercepted. If they were going to attack, it would have been earlier during one of the Emperor's rare outdoor public outings. _Maybe it was only a threat, maybe they were never actually planning to do anything._ Bail was relieved to not have one more thing to worry about.

Lieutenant Sobrel's and his security team followed them everywhere he and Leia went. Bail could tell that Leia was having a good time; he had to admit, if one did not know what exactly they were celebrating, it would be easy to get caught up in the circus-like atmosphere of Empire Day, especially a child.

In the middle of one of the outdoor squares, there was a public performance taking place. It was non uncommon to see plays being performed in this area of Coruscant. It was in the governmental district and one of the most heavily trafficked area; even on a normal day. On Empire Day, the performers could expect to draw a crowd of several thousand in a fairly short period of time.

It took a moment before Bail realized the subject matter of the play; it was a dramatization of the Jedi purge. Here, for everyone to see, was the dramatization of the Emperor's biggest atrocity to date, not including the Clone War. Bail somehow knew it would not remain the worst atrocity committed by Palpatine.

Of course, the performers were not telling the true story. At one point the play showed the remaining Jedi in the temple killing the younglings instead of letting them be returned to their parents. This was not the first time he had seen a performance such as this; but no matter how many times he saw it, it still angered and disgusted him. Of course, Bail was conscious of his facial expressions, he could not show what he was truly feeling; Coruscant was full of unfriendly eyes.

"Come on Leia, we need to be heading back to the Consulate." Bail decided that his and Leia's Empire Day excursions were over; Leia had done her duty as royal representative of Alderaan. It was time to plan the trip home.

Bail expected Leia to be disappointed, but the strangest thing happened. Leia suddenly began looking around quickly and she had the oddest expression on her face. "Yes Father, I think we need to go."

Leia grabbed his hand and began walking quickly toward the speeder, Bail was confused by Leia's actions. When they reached the speeder, Lieutenant Sobrel flew the speeder away from the area, toward the consulate. Leia's strange behavior did not stop, she continued to look around like she was expecting something to attack her. "Leia, is something wrong?"

The princess turned to her father, "I don't know, I just want to get back to the consulate."

Before he could ask any other questions, a loud blast ripped through the governmental district. It surprised Lieutenant Sobrel so much that he almost lost control of the speeder. Leia ducked down in her seat while Bail turned toward the direction of the explosion. In horror, he saw the large city platform they had been on just a few minutes ago as a twisted pile of black, burning rubble. The entire platform was destroyed. _There must be at least eighty thousand dead._

Sobrel, like many of the other drivers in the Coruscant sky traffic pattern, had pulled over after he got control of the speeder. The security officer turned away from the utter destruction he was witnessing to the senator. "What are your orders?"

Bail looked down to see Leia rolled in a tight ball with her head covered by her hands, the explosion had really frightened his daughter. Trying to think about what was expected of him in situations like this, Bail made a decision he did not want to make. "I'm going to be needed at the consulate. I can't leave Leia alone, go to Ambassador Komour's quarters, I think he also lives in 500 Republica. Contact his wife, Sabé Komour, tell her we are on our way. Ask her if it is possible for her to care for Leia for a while."


	13. Chapter 12

_**Chapter 12:**_

Alarms sounded throughout Imperial Center, and the dozens of Imperial substations were immediately sent into crisis mode. After the explosion, a red alert had been issued throughout the entire Empire, not only on the capitol. As a result of the red alert state, all traffic in and out of Imperial Center was stopped and marshal law was declared.

Station One's status as the main hub for Imperial Center's massive internal security network, by default, gave the commander of Station One authority to direct Imperial assets throughout the entire planet. Until ordered otherwise, Major Adan Nol was now in charge of the hands on work of seeing the capitol through this new crisis.

"Status report, Lieutenant." The major ordered as he entered the command room, the explosion had only occurred less than five minutes prior and the normally calm and professional atmosphere had degenerated into a state approaching chaos. The major knew that he had to get his officers thinking clearly if lives were going to be saved.

He had no worries about the stormtroopers; most of them were clones that were bred for crisis and battle. It was the officers that Nol was the most concerned with; all of them had graduated the academy after the Clone War was over. Very few of them had seen real combat. An attack of this magnitude on the Imperial capitol was the last thing many of the officers here would have imagined.

Whatever their prior experience, Nol needed competent and professional officers immediately. There was a rescue to coordinate, security to be put in place, and an investigation to begin. Of course, Adan was almost certain who was responsible. _Soldiers of the Republic, they actually did it._ After the Emperor's public appearances this morning, Nol was almost certain that the threat had passed. _I am such a fool._

His executive officer, Lieutenant Mesko, jumped to action at his commander's orders. Of the entire group of officers stationed here, Nol believed that Mesko was the most capable; he was pleased with his work so far. "Major, reports are coming in as fast as the droids can process them. The explosion took out an entire city platform in governmental sector J7-154."

Nol studied the reports Mesko gave him and sighed. "We need to eliminate all the possibilities before we proceed. Could this have been an accident of some kind? Could a crashed ship maybe have caused this?"

Mesko shook his head, "even something as big as a capitol ship could not have done this much damage, and scanners would have reported something that large coming in. All reports indicate that the destruction was caused by an explosion."

"You're right; of course, I just wanted to entertain all possibilities. All right Lieutenant, I want rescue vehicles and fire equipment at the site immediately." Nol stopped for a moment before he continued his orders. "Marshal law has been declared; begin deploying troops to sensitive sights. Hopefully, Lord Vader will take some troops off duty in the Outer-Rim and redeploy them to Imperial Center, we need the additional assets."

"Do you think he will?"

"I do not claim to know Lord Vader's mind, but it makes sense. The capitol could be hit again; Imperial Center is the heart of the Empire, and it needs to be protected. I'm certain Lord Vader understands that." Nol, like all sane soldiers in the Imperial military, feared Vader very much; but he respected his abilities. The second in command of the Empire was cold and terrifying, but far from stupid.

Mesko nodded in agreement. "Any other orders, Sir?"

Major Nol had been given broad powers concerning the day-to-day ground security operations on Imperial Center. However, for an event of this magnitude, he was certain that Vader would probably step in and take control of the situation. Until then, he was in charge. "No, follow all protocol regarding a level four event; our priority at this point is to save as many lives as possible. I want continual updates on the status of the rescue efforts, and fill me in immediately if any new information is discovered."

Knowing he was dismissed, Lieutenant Mesko saluted sharply, "yes sir; right away sir."

Disasters on a planet were classified separately and each level of event was assigned certain standing orders and protocols. This categorization was a holdover from the days of the Republic. There had been changes made to reflect the new Empire, but the specific categories had not changed. A level four event was a non-natural disaster with loss of life of over fifty thousand beings.

Nol was going from workstation to workstation checking on the work of various officers. He was trying to exude calm professionalism as an example to his men, but as the minutes went by, he was finding it harder to do so. He tried not to compare this event with the attack that killed his family during the Clone War; but there were similarities. The method of attack was not the same. Instead of orbital bombardment this was probably a bomb; but like the attack that destroyed his family, the poor souls that were lost today also did not get to see the face of their killers.

As the minutes progressed, more information was coming in regarding the disaster. The rescue and recovery crews that were on the scene reported very few survivors and the destruction was total; the entire city platform would have to be rebuilt. The early death-count estimates were approaching one-hundred-thousand.

So far, the citizens and visitors to Imperial Center were remaining calm, despite the circumstances. Nol reasoned that they were in shock that someone would dare hit the capitol. Memories of the CIS attack on the capitol over eight years prior must have been rekindled. The major hoped that things remained calm and force would not have to be used against rioting civilians wanting revenge.

Revenge was an emotion Adan was intimately familiar with. After his family's death by Separatist forces, he felt its cold hand snaking its way through his very soul. He wanted to hurt, crush, and destroy all those who were responsible for the destruction of his family and the city he grew up in. This was not how he was raised; his parents had taught him never to return evil for evil; but in the dark fog that surrounded the days after senseless murder of those he loved, the lessons he learned early in life were forgotten.

He was still in the military academy when the attack occurred, and thus had few opportunities to carry out his revenge. In the end, Lord Vader was the one who destroyed the Separatist's leaders and ended the war. As time passed, Adan's rage faded as he focused solely on becoming a good officer.

He was glad those who killed so many were brought to justice. Nol had no idea how the separatist's leaders were killed, and he really did not want to. He had heard many stories throughout the years about Vader's particular brand of justice. He knew the ones responsible for this day's attack on Imperial Center would also be subject to Vader's justice.

Nol's communication's unit came to life, "Major, there's a communication coming in for you; it's on your personal frequency."

There would only be one person using that particular frequency. "Send it to my office; I'll take it in there." Taking personal calls while on duty was a major breach of protocol, but Adan knew that his wife must have been incredibly frightened. He knew that he risked a reprimand, but he did not care.

Adan was thankful that his beloved was no where near the explosion; she had told him this morning that she was not planning on attending any of the Empire Day celebrations. She claimed it was because she hated the crowds; Adan knew that was only part of the reason. Rema had grown up in the farming areas of Talus and was uncomfortable living on the hyper-city capitol planet. When he had gotten his assignment to Imperial Center, he knew that she did not want to go; but she followed him and had been making the best of it.

Deep down, though, Adan knew that his wife's hatred of large crowds was not the only reason for her reluctance to attend the Empire Day festivities. Rema did not like the Empire, pure and simple. Of course, she had never said anything that could be considered treasonous, but a few comments during the time he had known her had given away her dislike.

For an Imperial major to be married to a non-supporter was an uncomfortable and possibly dangerous situation. He loved Rema more than anything, but he wished she would make more of an effort to show support of the Empire. She dutifully accompanied him to officer's social functions and she even hosted a few dinner parties for Imperial officers, but Adan knew she did it reluctantly. She always seemed very uncomfortable about the topics that would come up during those events.

Her not attending the Empire Day festivities with their child was a different matter; it was important for the families of Imperial officers to be seen there. Adan remembered they had nearly got into a fight this morning over her not attending any of the celebrations. He insisted she show her face and she just brushed him off. He tried to stress that she, as the wife of an Imperial officer, was duty bound to be an example to the other citizens of the Empire. She shot back with, "I married you; I certainly did not marry the Empire." Adan thought it was wise to let the matter rest for another time.

Nol thought he would never be more thankful for his wife's stubbornness than he was today; she and his son were safe at home because of it. He made his way to his office and activated his HoloNet transmitter and smiled as the image of his beautiful wife appeared in the room. "Rema, are you and Tomas all right?"

She nodded, "Yes, we're fine. Oh Adan, I know you're not supposed to take personal communications as work, but I had to make sure you were all right."

"Don't worry about it; I'm very glad you contacted me. Everything is fine where I am. How is everyone in our building?" The Nol's lived in a relatively small building in the Corellian sector and the residents there were fairly closely knitted.

Rema wiped the tears that began to flow, she was having trouble speaking. Finally, she answered, "A few people I've talked to have missing family members. Because of Empire Day, families are scattered all over the capitol. The Lessa's have not been heard from. Adan, I talked to Nala this morning, she was taking her kids to the celebration on the exact city platform that was hit."

Nala Lessa was one of Rema's best friends and a fellow officer's wife. Her husband, Captain Karl Lessa, was commander of a small detention center to the south. Adan hoped that Nala and her two children were not caught in the explosion; he knew her death would be a blow to Rema. "My love, it's too early to speculate. It was late in the day when the attack occurred; she might have been on her way home."

Adan could see his wife fighting waves of emotion; she closed her eyes briefly, and then opened them seemingly more composed. "You're right." Rema then paused, "So, it was an attack? HoloNet has been speculating that since it happened, but you know how HoloNet news is."

He groaned inwardly when his wife caught his misspeak. It was not officially declared that this was the result of an attack. Anything coming out of a military office that was contradictory to the Empire's official statements was not viewed highly. Adan hoped that this conversation of theirs was not being recorded. If it was, he could be in for some serious trouble. "I'm sorry Rema, I shouldn't have said that. When the investigation begins, we'll know more."

"I understand."

"My love, I have to go. Just remember, do not leave the apartment for any reason." Adan knew there were some areas of Imperial Center that may eventually be problematic; he did not want his wife or child caught up in the middle of any trouble. "I probably won't be coming home tonight. Hug Tomas for me and tell him I'll be home as soon as possible."

Adan could tell that Rema was not thrilled that he was not coming home, but she accepted it with no complaints. "I will; I love you. Please be safe."

"I will; I love you." Regretfully, he switched off the HoloNet receiver. He never wanted this for her; he never wanted his wife to be afraid in her own home. This was what the Empire was supposed to bring, security; that was why it was overwhelmingly supported. _We obviously have a long way to go before we are truly secure._

Adan was relieved to know that his family was safe. He knew he had to put all thoughts of them out of his mind and focus on his job. Major Nol left his office and returned to the command center. Leaving his role as husband and father temporarily, it was time to become the soldier again.

* * *

Darth Vader was in his hypobaric chamber when he felt the disturbance in the Force. It surprised him when he realized that it was coming from something close by; a major event had occurred on Imperial Center itself. After the suit was put back on him, the Sith Lord quickly exited his quarters on his flagship and made his way to the bridge. 

The _Devastator_ had been in orbit of the capitol since the beginning of the Empire Day festivities. Even though the Sith had an official residence on Imperial Center, he could only count on one hand the number of times he had actually entered it. He preferred to remain on his ship.

Vader's on-planet quarters were located close to the old Jedi temple. Through most of the windows, he could see the burned remains of the building he once called home. The Sith apprentice knew why his master had given him those quarters. Sidious wanted him to remember the lies he was told by the Jedi who reluctantly accepted him to be trained all those years ago. Sidious said once that he wanted Vader to never forget the power he wielded that fateful night when he destroyed them.

That night, everything seemed possible; unlimited power was flowing through his veins. He was going to save his wife and save the galaxy all in one fell swoop. His new master was going to show him the way to the kind of power he had only dreamed about; the power the hypocrites on the Jedi council only kept for themselves. He was going to change the galaxy and have his wife and child with him; there were no limits to what he could do or what he could have.

That night, power was there for the taking, and the newly minted Sith took it and used it to destroy the traitorous Jedi Order. Whether it was because of what Kenobi did to him, or another reason altogether, Vader never felt that much power again. Of course, that never stopped him in his quest to regain it.

Vader strode purposefully into the command center, much to the surprise of the captain. "My Lord, I was just about to contact you. There has been an explosion on Imperial Center near the governmental sector; the report just came in."

The captain of the _Devastator_ was newly appointed and was not used to Vader's unusual abilities. The officer was terrified of him, especially after hearing rumors of the circumstances behind the last captain's demise, and the one before that. The general consensus of the rest of the crew was that this captain was not going to last; there was even a ship pool betting on how long this one would live.

Vader searched the Force for any clues as to how this could have been accomplished. This was never his strong suit, however, and the Sith could not break through the massive Force waves caused by the sudden fear on the planet below. Like it or not, only his master had the power to break through it.

_I wonder if he foresaw this._ Sidious had a great deal of power which gave him the ability to foresee many events before they occurred. Over the years Vader had served the Sith Lord, he had seen his master's precognitive abilities. If his master knew what was going to happen, why would he allow it to occur? Vader believed that this would only cause chaos and instability within the Empire, something he hated.

_Maybe he did not see this coming._ As Vader had discovered throughout the years, Sidious was extremely powerful but he was not all-powerful, despite what he wanted Vader to believe. It was possible that this event caught his master by surprise. _I must meditate on this at another time._

Vader turned toward the waiting captain, "make certain no one enters of leaves the planet. Prepare my shuttle, I'm going down there."

"Yes, My Lord."

Suddenly, a sharp tone came from the communications console. The officer in charge of that station nervously approached the captain and Vader. "Captain, Lord Vader, excuse me; there is a message coming in from the Emperor. He is requesting Lord Vader's presence immediately."

Vader fought the urge to choke the communications officer to death. Despite how much he wanted to, he knew it would not be practical considering their situation; there was no time to have him replaced during an event of this magnitude.

In reality, it was Sidious he was angry at. His master could have contacted him through the Force to request his presence, but he purposefully chose not to. _He wants me to appear weak in front of my men._ It was one of the Sith master's many ways of keeping his apprentice in line. It was Sidious' way of letting Vader know that, while he may have power over his ship and the military, it was the Emperor who wielded the true power and could order Vader to come and go as he pleased.

Without a word, Vader left the bridge and headed toward the shuttle bay. Despite his anger, he had to obey his master. _Someday, I will be the master._

* * *

Deep in the Outer-Rim a small, but growing, group of dissidents were headquartered. When Soldiers of the Republic was formed, they were just a rag-tag group of Republic idealists who had a lot of anger, but very little in the way of resources. It all changed when Typho joined their group. 

Typho brought much expertise and a lot of credits to their organization. He apparently had been paid very well as a security consultant in the years following the fall of the Republic. It was him that came up with their plan to strike against the very heart of the Empire, Coruscant itself. It was incredibly risky, but Typho convinced them that it was the only way to destroy the Empire and return democracy to the Republic.

Of course, the operation that Typho insisted on doing himself had not gone the way it was planned. Sama Lus, one of the leaders of the movement wondered, as she made her way to the planning room, if it was Typho's plan all along to destroy the city platform instead of doing what he said he was going to do.

As she entered, another member of the leadership council immediately came up to her and began speaking his mind. "Sama, I can't believe what has happened. Typho lied to us; he lied to us the entire time!"

Sama was inclined to agree with him, but this was not the time to lose one's head. "Maybe, how bad is it?"

"HoloNet says that there are over one-hundred-thousand estimated deaths, civilian deaths. He was supposed to hit the blasted Royal Ball, not kill innocent civilians! If he did what he said he was going to do it would have taken out the Emperor, along with those sycophantic royals."

Sama put her hand up to signal her friend to calm down. "I understand Matt; this is going to cause a major backlash. We need to be prepared for that. Does anyone know where Typho is?"

Matt shook his head, "no one knows. He might have been caught up in the explosion."

"We can't be for sure. If he is caught and interrogated, he will be forced to reveal our location. Call the rest of the leadership council; we need to prepare to leave this planet." Sama knew that, most likely, Imperial soldiers will be storming this base probably in a matter of days. _Damn you Typho! We should have never trusted you._

* * *

Of all of Lord Sidious' minions, Vader hated the Imperial guard the most. His red robed elite guards answered to the Emperor alone and responded only to his orders. At this moment, they were blocking his entrance into the Imperial throne room. Vader wanted to kill each and every one of them slowly. However, if he acted on that impulse right now, his master would not be pleased; the Sith apprentice had to wait for Sidious to allow him entrance. Vader added "kill the red-robes" to the long list of things he would do once he became Emperor. 

Imperial Center had been attacked and action needed to be taken, and the one who could bring order to this chaos was wasting his time here. Vader internalized this anger; he would need the power it fueled to do what must be done to secure the Empire and destroy those who attacked it. _How dare they attack my Empire!_

Finally, the Imperial guards moved out of Vader's way and allowed him entrance into the throne room. Quickly he strode toward the throne and knelt in front of Lord Sidious. "Master, what is thy bidding?"

The Emperor barely lifted his head at his apprentice's approach. "You are to find the ones responsible for this and make certain Imperial Center is secure."

_What, no reprimand for allowing this to happen? _Vader was not surprised by Lord Sidious' command; he figured that he would be the one in charge of the investigation. However, he was certain that the Emperor would blame him and his men for not securing Imperial Center better. "Yes Master."

He knew that he would need more authority to carry out his master's wishes. The further away from the Core planets, the more Vader was allowed to do. If Imperial Center was going to truly be secure, more laws and regulations would have to be enacted. True martial law would have to be enforced; those living on Imperial Center were allowed too many liberties. It needed to stop immediately. "I will need more authority to truly secure the capitol."

"You have it, Lord Vader; do what must be done." With a wave of his hand, Sidious used the Force to open the large throne room doors, "you are dismissed."

As Vader left the Imperial palace, he thought about his short conversation with Sidious. The Emperor did not act like the Sith apprentice expected him to act. He was prepared for his master to blame him for allowing the attack to take place, but he did not do that. Vader was reminded of his earlier theory that Sidious knew the attack was going to take place. He did not really understand why his master would have allowed it to take place if he knew it was going to happen, but still, Vader could not dismiss the thought. _I wonder what he would have to gain by letting this happen, it will only cause instability._

Vader decided his first step was to go to Station One and take over ground security operations from Major Nol. There was a lot that needed to be done for capitol to truly be secure. More troops needed to be brought in from the Outer-Rim operations to administer martial law, buildings would have to be searched, and anyone who was not a full supporter of the new order would be put under a very uncomfortable spotlight. Starting on Imperial Center and extending out to the rest of the Empire, treason would be ruthlessly stamped out. _Finally, the Empire will be closer to what it should have been all along._


	14. Chapter 13

_**Chapter 13:**_

After reluctantly dropping Leia off at the Komour residence, Bail immediately made his way to the Senate. The first thing he noticed when he arrived was the increased number of stormtroopers that were stationed there. The entire governmental complex looked like a war zone. The last time so many troopers were stationed here was after the CIS attack during the Clone War when the Supreme Chancellor was kidnapped. The senator remembered being disturbed by the increased presence, but he understood the necessity of it.

In this case, he also understood the necessity of increased security. The explosion was horrific and the death toll was unfathomable. He was fairly certain that it was Soldiers of the Republic who was responsible for the destruction. While he shared their hatred of the Empire, he was appalled by their murderous tactics. Bail knew that they had to be stopped. _They have become as evil as the one they claim to be fighting against._

After going through several security checks, the senator made his way to the Alderaanian consulate, he wanted to make certain his staff was safe and he needed more information. He was also certain that several messages waited for him, most likely from members of the Organization. _This attack is going to change everything._

Bail knew that a security crackdown would be a result of this incident. The Organization would need to step back from their activities, at least until things calmed down. He was aware that certain members of the Organization would not like that, they were very impatient, but it was the smart thing to do if they were going to survive to bring about real change.

Another security check awaited him before he entered the Alderaanian consulate. When he entered, several staff members immediately swarmed around him asking how he was and began giving reports on the latest news. He put up a hand to stop them, "All right, one at a time. First of all, I am fine and so is Princess Leia. Is anyone missing?"

One of his many aides spoke up, "no one from our consulate is missing. However, there are reports of missing people all over the Senate complex; two senators have not reported in yet."

Bail was concerned, while he did not share the views of many senators, they were still co-workers and he knew a great many of them. He was also worried that a member of the Organization might have been killed. Their numbers were very few and they could not afford to lose anyone. "Who is missing?"

The aid looked down at his datapad, "Nora Shamal of Eriadu, and Omerth Narami of Naboo."

He was relieved to hear no members of the Organization were among the missing. Bail had never met the senator from Eriadu, but Narami was very familiar to him. He was one of Palpatine's biggest supporters in the Senate and Bail had been forced to listen to several of his speeches where he shamelessly lavished praise on the Emperor. The senator had to admit that he was not particularly sad to hear of his possible demise. "Let me know if they are found, alive or otherwise."

Bail continued to receive reports from his staff and answer questions for nearly an hour. The atmosphere was tense, and it was not just in the Alderaanian consulate. The entire planet was in a state of panic, especially after the lockdown began. No one could enter or leave the capital for the foreseeable future. Bail understood why this was being done, but he was unhappy that he was not going to be able to take Leia home as he planned. It could be weeks before they would be able to leave. It was upsetting, he did not want his daughter on Coruscant any longer, but he knew it was something he was going to have to accept.

Another aide alerted the group to the HoloNet viewer that was set to show constant news reports ever since the explosion occurred. A human woman was announcing news on the status of the investigation: "There is not much to report at this moment, but there are rumors that an official investigation has already begun and Lord Vader himself is leading the investigation into the horrific attack on the Empire Day celebration which has killed an estimated one hundred and ten thousand Imperial citizens."

While he could not say that he was surprised by the news, the senator knew exactly what it meant by having Lord Vader lead the investigation; it meant that Coruscant would never be the same. Any residual freedom for the citizens of the capitol will be snatched away; the planet will be under complete military control. Bail theorized that the military control would probably last far longer than the investigation. He also knew that this crackdown would not be limited to the capital; increased subjugation of the entire Empire would be the result.

After giving orders to his staff to immediately inform him if anything changes, Bail retired to his office. As he suspected, there were hundreds of messages for him. The most important was from his wife. Bail immediately accessed his HoloNet transmitter and contacted her.

Within seconds, the image of his wife appeared before him, she looked relieved. "Bail, I'm so glad you finally contacted me. I sent several communications, your staff did not know where you was; I'm so happy to see you."

Bail smiled, "I'm fine My Love, and Leia is fine."

"Where is she?"

"She is with Ambassador Komour's family; Leia and his wife have become fast friends and they have children around Leia's age. It seemed like the best place to take her considering the circumstances." He did not want to explain to Breha the relationship Jorran Komour's wife had with Leia's biological mother; Bail knew that would not go over well.

Breha nodded, "How close were you to the bombing?"

Bail knew that he had to tell the truth, even know the truth would frighten Breha. "Quite close actually, we were on the platform that got hit." He hesitated before continuing on with the most frightening part of the story. "Right before it happened, Leia wanted to leave. She was very urgent about it; it was almost like she…"

The queen's eyes widened, "What are you saying Bail? You told me that wasn't possible."

When Leia was first brought to Aldera Palace and was adopted, he had not told his wife much about her origins. He did not want his wife to be burdened with the knowledge that he was privy to. After three years, however, Bail began to feel guilty for leaving her in the dark and he finally told her much of the truth. It was then that Bail told her the little girl that they were raising as their own was the child of Darth Vader.

Breha was very afraid that Vader may be drawn to any abilities within the Force Leia might possess. To comfort her, Bail had told her what Obi-Wan had the last time he saw him. The Jedi master told him that it was possible that Leia's Force abilities may not emerge because she would not be around any other Force sensitive beings.

In Leia's eight years, he had not seen evidence of Force sensitivity, until she visited Coruscant. Over the last few days, he had seen a change come over his daughter. The incident today convinced him that the Force was awakening inside Leia; it sickened him to think that it was the presence of Sith Lords which caused this emergence. No matter how much he hated it, he could not deny that it was probably true; they were the only Force sensitive beings which she could have come in contact with since her arrival on Coruscant.

"We should wait for another time to discuss this." Bail did not want to discuss a matter of this magnitude over a HoloNet connection which may not be entirely secure.

Breha gave her husband a look that he knew very well. He knew when he got home they would talk about this at length. "Of course. How long do you think it will be before you can come home?"

Bail shook his head, "I don't know; the entire planet is locked down. It could be weeks."

Breha sighed, "Weeks? Is it really that bad?"

"Yes, over one-hundred-thousand deaths. The Empire is going to crack down hard."

"Is it true that Vader himself is going to be handling the investigation?" Breha asked.

"That is what HoloNet is reporting; however, nothing has been announced officially." Bail knew that leaks did not occur from the Imperial Palace. If information supposedly was leaked from there, it was the Emperor's doing.

"Things will be worse then."

"Yes," Bail answered simply, he knew that his wife was fully aware of the implications.

"And the crackdown will probably eventually spread out to the rest of the planets in the Empire?"

"Yes, it will." Bail knew that Alderaan would eventually feel the reverberations of the incident on Coruscant.

Breha nodded, "I must prepare the people then."

Bail hated that he was not able to be there with her during this time, but there was nothing he could do. He was going to have to figure out a way of keeping Leia safe and keeping the Organization in tact. The queen was going to have to prepare the people of Alderaan for increased Imperial pressure. "Breha, I must go."

"I know; there is much to be done." Breha smiled bravely, but Bail could see much sadness behind her eyes. "Give my love to Leia and keep me informed of what is occurring at the capitol."

"I will; goodbye my love." The transmission ended and the hologram of Breha disappeared.

Knowing that he did not have much time, Bail immediately sent an appointment request to Mon Mothma. They had to discuss Organization business and he could not risk communicating over HoloNet. Within seconds, the senator from Chandrila sent a response and agreed to an immediate appointment; she too understood the gravity of the situation.

* * *

Nol received the message that Lord Vader was on his way only two minutes before he arrived, leaving him little time to prepare himself and his men. Just like two days earlier when he came for his inspection, the major met Vader at Station One's entryway. "Lord Vader, welcome again to Station One. Anything…" 

"You may dispense with the pleasantries," Vader interrupted. "I am here to take control of planetary security until further notice."

"Yes my lord, of course." Nol was not surprised by this turn of events; he knew it was only a matter of time before the second in command of the Empire would put himself in charge of the situation. Even though he was not surprised, Adan was concerned. He did not want to be working under Vader; too many horror stories had circulated throughout the Imperial ranks. He had left a trail of dead officers, especially the officers which were directly under him. No one wanted to be put in that position. _And that is the position that I'm finding myself in. Oh Rema, I hope to come home to you and Tomas._

Vader began walking quickly toward the command center; Major Nol followed behind him. "You will be my executive officer on the ground; and will carry out all of my orders with no mistakes. I expect nothing less; do not disappoint me."

It did not take a genius to figure out what the consequences of disappointing Vader would be. "Yes, my lord." Adan was not certain how to respond to that order, so he opted to say very little.

Instead of going directly into the command center, Vader turned into Nol's office. "I will use this space while I am here."

_Again, he takes my office._ "Of course, we will provide you with everything you need."

"See that you do."

Nol remained in the office at attention, he knew better than to leave without Vader dismissing him. Vader began inspecting the communication equipment, seeming to ignore the increasingly uncomfortable officer. Adan was about to speak up and ask his superior if he needed anything else from him, but much to the major's relief, Vader spoke first. "This equipment is substandard. Send a requisition for the latest equipment, it will be approved."

"Yes, My Lord." _It's about time. _Adan had been requesting newer equipment ever since he became commander of Station One and was always denied. Most of the credits the military received were used for the Imperial Guard and Vader's operations on the Outer-Rim; funding was a sore subject among many of the officers in the Imperial military.

Vader remained standing; Nol wondered if he ever sat down. He just could not image him ever resting. The second in command produced a datapad and handed it to the major. "This is a list of the new regulations I want in place immediately. Also, I want you to coordinate with Imperial Intelligence; I need a list of all officers stationed on the capitol whose families did not attend any of the Empire Day functions today."

Nol's heart stopped momentarily as he felt a cold chill in his very bones. _Rema did not attend._ On Empire Day, the areas where the many official celebrations occurred were highly watched. It was law that every attendee must enter through an official checkpoint. Because of the sheer size of Imperial Center, there were those who missed going through an official checkpoint, but never the families of Imperial military. They were told to make certain to go through a checkpoint where they would enter their fingerprints for the purpose of building a database of attendees.

The official reasoning behind the checkpoints was for security; that was part of it. Nol always suspected that a major reason behind it was because the Empire wanted to know who and who were not showing their full support for Palpatine's new government. That was the reason why Adan was always distressed when Rema would not go to the official functions on Empire Day; he was afraid that someday, his wife's refusal to participate would become an issue. That day had finally come.

Adan tried not to stutter as he addressed Lord Vader, "My Lord, is there something specific you are looking for?"

Vader did not answer right away; instead he continued to stare at the frightened officer. Nol almost felt like the second in command was somehow getting inside his head and searching his thoughts and trying to discover his motivations. One of the many rumors that made its way through the ranks of the Empire about its second in command was that Vader could read minds. Nol could not afford to discount those rumors anymore. He knew that Vader had unnatural powers; he had been a witness himself two nights ago when he saw a man being choked without being touched. It was unreasonable to assume that reading minds was beyond his abilities.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Vader responded. "Major, it is very possible that someone within the military was responsible for today's attack. It is also possible that traitor is stationed here on Imperial Center. If their families did not attend any of the functions today, that may be because they were warned to stay away."

Nol tried to keep his panic from showing. Then he thought about how much of a long-shot it was. If an officer was planning on betraying the Empire by attacking Imperial Center, all he would have done to cause no suspicion is tell his family to attend another official function far away from where the bomb was to be planted. _Vader is fishing for something; he must not have much to go on._

Still, Adan was no less nervous about producing a list of officers whose families did not attend Empire Day when he would be included. He was not too worried about himself; it was Rema he was really concerned about. He knew his wife had nothing to do with this, but he did not want any Imperial spotlight on her, especially Lord Vader's.

"Is there a problem Major Nol?" Vader asked in a dangerous tone.

"No, my lord, I will get the information you requested." Nol pulled himself together hoping that Vader did not detect his panic. Somehow, however, he knew that the second in command of the Empire was fully aware of his emotional state but was choosing to not question him about it for the moment.

"You are dismissed."

Adan had never been so happy to be kicked out of his own office. After the doors closed, he stopped and took a breath to calm his raging emotions. He was glad he probably would not be expected to produce the list today. Imperial Intelligence was a fairly dense bureaucracy and getting information, even with orders from Lord Vader, was not something one could get quickly. _It will at least be a day until it's expected._

Nol was not certain what he was going to do with the extra time; it was not like it made much of a difference. However, Adan figured that it would give him some time to be able to speak to Rema and prepare her for some possible attention.

Knowing he had a job to do, the major looked down at the datapad Vader had given him. There were very few surprises on the list of new regulations and protocols for Imperial Center security. He knew that many people would interpret them as being draconian but few would complain publicly. Preparing himself for many hours of tedious work, Adan entered the command center ready to disseminate Vader's orders to the rest of the men.

* * *

"Here's a list of the new security regulations." Senators Mon Mothma and Bail Organa had been discussing, at length, the new situation on Coruscant. They had been talking for over an hour when the senator from Chandrila received a copy of the new regulations. As members of the Imperial Senate, they were privy to certain information not announced to the general public. 

"If Vader is given authority to secure Coruscant, I can only imagine." Bail knew he needed to be prepared for control the likes of which this planet had never seen.

Mon sighed loudly as she read the list silently. "Vader must have been given total control."

"Is it that bad?"

Senator Mothma began reading the highlights of the list. "Let's see…triple the number of military checkpoints throughout the entire city with an increase of checkpoints in the governmental district by a factor of four. There will be more soldiers patrolling the main residential complexes with random checks throughout residences in all of Coruscant."

Bail interrupted with a sigh. "Let me guess, no concrete proof is needed for stormtroopers to burst down someone's door in the middle of the night. No right to refuse either."

Mon smiled grimly, "Of course not. Here it says: 'the searches are at the discretion of the military commanders. Any Imperial subject found hindering the efforts of the Emperor's agents will be subject to immediate arrest or suppression depending on the circumstances.'" The senator closed her eyes briefly to center herself and stave off a flood of emotion. "In other words, if anyone shows the slightest resistance they can be shot down in their own home."

"Did you notice the wording? Notice that we are now 'subjects'; earlier we were all 'citizens of the Empire working together for glory, peace, and security of the galaxy.'" Bail could not keep the bitterness out of his voice as he sarcastically repeated one of the lines from the Emperor's speech earlier in the day.

"You can tell Vader wrote this; he doesn't care about politics." Mon shook her head in disgust. "If the Emperor wrote this, it would not have been as harshly worded. He would have made it seem like these new measures were the people's idea and he was just following their wishes."

Bail scoffed, "I'm not sure which I prefer more. With Vader you get cruelty, but at least he doesn't pretend to be something other than a brutal tyrant."

Mon looked down at the list, "there's more."

"Go on."

The senator from Chandrila rattled off more of the new regulations, "Martial law is in effect indefinitely, no public meetings are allowed — even those of a religious nature, and the list goes on and on." Mon dropped the datapad on the desk in frustration.

"I'll look at them when I get back to my office." Bail's voice was quiet and thoughtful. He looked up at his senatorial colleague, "What about the Organization?"

Mothma leaned back in her chair and shook her head, "We're going to have to pull back from our activities for a time."

"That is going to anger a few people; they already think that we're going too slowly." Bail knew that Mon was aware which members of the Organization that would be angry but no names were said. It was Organization practice to never speak the names of other members during meetings in case their security measures failed and they were bugged by Imperial Intelligence. If that happened, only those in the meeting itself would be implicated and the rest of the Organization would remain anonymous.

"Yes, I'm perfectly aware of that. It's the only way we're going to survive during Vader's reign of terror."

"Mon, it's very possible that these new security measures will remain permanently. We're going to have to learn how to deal with that."

She suddenly threw up her hands in annoyance, "I know that Bail, but we can't pretend that nothing has changed; everything has changed!"

Bail put up his hand to hopefully calm his colleague; Mothma rarely raised her voice. "I know that, more than you think."

Mon dropped her head into her hands for a moment and then looked up again to Bail, "I'm sorry, I just sometimes feel…" She trailed off, her voice uncertain.

"How do you feel?"

"I feel that we're fighting a war without any foreseeable end, protecting the dream of a political system that seems to be out of fashion. All this attack is going to do is strengthen the Emperor's hold."

"Maybe it will," Bail responded with conviction in his voice. "But maybe Vader's reign of terror that the Emperor is allowing will serve to accomplish the opposite. Maybe it will show the people that they do live in a dictatorship that can take away what little rights they have on a whim."

"That's possible; I wish I had your faith."

Bail looked at his colleague very seriously. "Faith is the only thing I'm holding onto right now--faith that there will be a better day for my family and my people—faith that my grandchildren will not have to live under the shadow of the Empire."

Mon smiled, "I'm so glad you're with us. The Organization would never have survived if it wasn't for you."

Bail always hated it when he was told that; it was like they were putting all of their faith in him. He knew he was not worthy of it. "Thank you, but there may come a day when I won't be around. I may someday get killed or captured, please don't pin all of your hopes on me."

"I know; though, I'm glad you're with us now."

Bail stood up, "Mon, it's late, it's nearly 0100; I'm going to have to pick up Leia. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Of course, I wouldn't be surprised if the Emperor has a speech scheduled."

The senator from Alderaan groaned, "We all know how much he loves making speeches."

"Yes, he does." Mon suddenly remembered something, "Oh, I forgot to tell you. I think we might have a new informant."

"Really?"

"Yes, one of our associates told me. I'm not sure how much information this being can get, but if he or she can get anything it will be a plus."

Another organization custom was to never discuss too many details of their undercover operatives. "Interesting, let me know if you find out anything."

With that, Bail wearily left the office and headed out of the complex. It took it four times longer than normal to leave the Senate because of the increased security. _This is something that is not going to go away; I had better get used to it._


	15. Chapter 14

_**Chapter 14:**_

Adan did not have long to be off duty before he had to return. He was glad that he had, at least, a little time to be with his family. He hated that he could not be with Rema during what must have been a very difficult day. It had been ten hours since the explosion that killed over one-hundred-thousand near the governmental sector.

Imperial Center was in less chaos than he expected; the additional stormtroopers were doing their jobs admirably. However, Lord Vader was not satisfied. More troops had been called from their stations in the Outer-Rim to the capitol. They were scheduled to arrive tomorrow afternoon. When that happened, Imperial Center would look like a military base and not a planet where civilians lived. Nol continued to remind himself that this control over the populace was necessary for security, but a part of him believed that it was overkill.

Overkill—that word described everything about Vader. He had only worked with him for a few hours, but Adan learned much about him in that short time. He had learned nothing personal, but he had learned about Vader's working philosophy. He did nothing halfway; if a sector needed to be patrolled which required normally three troopers, Vader would order ten. If a suspect needed to be interrogated, he did it himself; he trusted no one else to do it properly.

In the last few hours, ten suspects had been brought in for questioning; Nol had witnessed Vader's interrogation of four of them. It was not the first time that he had seen an Imperial interrogation; in his career, he had assisted in many of them. An Imperial interrogation was very intense and could be very painful depending on how the suspect resisted. However, nothing he had seen could prepare him for watching Lord Vader question a suspect.

Those that were brought into Station One were what Nol referred to as "the usual suspects"; every time there was a major crime or hints of treason, these beings would be brought in for questioning. They all had ties to Imperial Center's large criminal underbelly that seemed to have survived and thrived despite several attempts to eradicate it. They were almost always brought in, questioned, and then released soon after. Usually, they would provide very little information but sometimes they would be very useful in pointing authorities in the right direction.

Nol was not surprised to see them brought in for questioning, but he did not count on the fact that Vader would want to put them through a complete interrogation. Adan knew that these beings were, at the most, mid-level criminals; they were not revolutionaries. Even if they wanted to be, they were not smart enough to pull something like this off.

He had tried to inform Vader that an interrogation was not necessary, but was ignored. Of then ten that were brought in, only four of them were questioned. Nol could still hear the screams of all of them as they yelled out everything they knew. In the end, none of those interrogated survived. Nol remembered how one of them, with blood coming out of his ears and nose, reached out and begged him to ask Vader to stop; those were the prisoner's last words before collapsing dead onto the floor.

The result of the interrogations was very little real information. However, a few of them had heard rumors that a human with a lot of money had been visiting underworld bars loudly decrying the Empire and praising those who blew up the city platform. It was strange, very few humans frequented cantinas in the undercity of Imperial Center. In response, Vader sent several groups of stormtroopers down there to find this man using whatever means necessary. It would take a while, the undercity was huge. Nol hoped something came out of it, but he feared it was a dead end.

Adan approached the entrance to his apartment. He could not wait to see his wife and son, but he was not looking forward to talking to Rema about Vader's request to know which military family members did not celebrate Empire Day. He knew that she needed to be prepared for some attention; but he was well aware that this conversation would not be pleasant.

After entering the code and opening the door, he found his wife standing in the small living area waiting for him. She ran up and embraced him, "Adan, I'm so glad you're finally home! I've been so worried."

He bent down and kissed his wife tenderly. "I'm glad to see you. Why were you worried? I told you that I would be home late."

Rema broke from the embrace and wiped the tears from her eyes; Adan could tell that she had been crying for a while. "I know, there's just so much going on, I thought that maybe…" She did not finish her thought; the tears began to flow again as she sat down on the couch. "I'm just happy you're home."

Adan sat down next to her and put his arms around her. "It's all right Rema, everything if fine; I'm here now."

"I just worry about you. I do all the time, but today was much worse." Rema buried her face into Adan's chest and he held her as she wept.

"If fine my love, I was in no danger today." _No danger if you don't count Lord Vader._ He hated lying to her but Adan decided it was best under these circumstances to not tell his wife that he was now under the direct authority of someone who has a reputation for killing officers seemingly at whim.

She eventually calmed down and the couple sat together in comfortable silence for a few minutes. Finally, Rema broke the silence, "I'm sorry about that."

Adan frowned in mock scolding, "Rema, what did I tell you about that? You are to never say that you're sorry for being concerned about me." He then smiled and gave her a small peck on the cheek. "Frankly, I'm glad someone is."

Rema was wiping a few remaining tears while laughing as she got up to go into her small kitchen, "I bet you're starving. What do you want to eat?"

Adan signed, "My love, it is the middle of the night; I know you are exhausted. You should be sleeping and not cooking."

"I couldn't sleep now, even if I wanted to; too much has happened." Rema continued into the kitchen which was open to the rest of the living area. "You're eating something before you go to sleep; you'd better tell me what you want."

_I hate to see her like this; she's so upset._ "I'll have what you and Tomas had for dinner." Rema nodded and began her preparations. "How is Tomas? How much does he know?" Their young son, who was sleeping in the other room, had just turned three years old, and he was the joy of their lives. Adan never thought that he would have a child and now he could not imagine his life without him.

"I told him someone really bad hurt a lot of people. What else could I say?"

"Tell him that the Empire will find the ones who did this and he will be protected." From his place on the couch, as his wife was at the counter running some vegetables through a slicer, he could see her shoulders visibly stiffen at the mention of the Empire. He could barely hear her muttering something under her breath. "What are you saying?"

Rema turned around sharply, "I said that I'm not going to tell my son any lies like that."

He got up and crossed the room to her, "What do you mean by that?"

She shook her head and returned to her food preparations, "No Adan, I'm not going to go into this tonight."

He knew that Rema had issues with the Empire, but she had never gone this far before; it was a troubling development. "Well, you brought it up. What did you mean?"

When she turned back around to face him, he could see that Rema seemed to be internally wresting with herself, finally, she made her decision. "Adan, I worry about what your job is going to do to you."

He sighed, "I've told you this before; I spend most of my time in my office, there's little danger."

"That's not what this is about; I'm not speaking of physical danger. Adan, I've met other Imperial officers and I've met their wives and some of the things I hear from them scare me." Rema was tearing up again, but her voice was firm and full of conviction.

"What scares you?"

"Like any other group of women, the officers' wives talk about our husbands amongst ourselves." Rema shrugged, "It's a thing women do. Anyway, some of them talk about how different their husbands have become over the years. I've heard stories of how they've become increasingly violent, colder to their children, and their only obsession seems to be gaining another rank with little thought to their families."

Adan knew the officers she was referring to. He wished that he could say that it was only a few of them, but those traits seemed to describe more and more Imperial military officers each year. The part about the increasing violence disturbed him though, "violent? Have any of these women been hurt?" If there was one thing that Adan could not stand, it was someone harming a woman or a child.

"None of them have said that their husbands have gotten physically violent, at least not to me."

He nodded satisfactorily, but he decided that he would look into the matter after this crisis on Imperial Center had calmed down. "What does this have to do with me, though?"

"I fear the same thing is going to happen to you eventually." Rema's voice began to rise with increased passion. "You're a good man, and I don't want to see the Empire change you!"

It had been a while since he had seen Rema this passionate about a subject. "How is it going to change me? It's my job."

"I know there are things that you have seen that you can't or won't ever tell me about; I know things have happened that will never be shown on HoloNet news, I'm no fool. Adan, I know those things that you have seen and done haunt you; I sleep right next to you, I know you have nightmares. I worry about the day when the nightmares stop and those things stop bothering you."

Adan was floored; this was the last thing that he expected from her. He had no idea that she knew about his nightmares or that she suspected the more brutal parts about his assignments. She was right, his wife was no fool. "Rema, I don't..."

She put her hand up to interrupt, "please don't insult me by denying it. I've gone to the dinner parties with other officers and I hear what you talk about. At the last one, Commander Veers spoke for about twenty minutes on efforts to subjugate the population in the Outer-Rim. Adan, the ways he said they were being subjugated were shocking. If that is what Imperials say in front of civilians, I can only imagine the horrors that are classified."

He had no idea how to respond. His first instinct was to deny everything, but he could not form the words. She was right, he had seen many horrific things during his time in the Imperial military; if he was truly honest with himself he would admit that those things had changed him and not for the better.

He was also very much disturbed that his wife was essentially accusing the Empire of committing atrocities. If she was saying this to any other officer, she could be accused of spreading dissent. Rema was walking a very dangerous line, especially now that Lord Vader was hunting for traitors. "Please don't say those things. You have no idea what kind of danger you're in."

Rema threw up her hands in anger, "Am I in danger from my own husband?" Her voice had gotten loud as her frustration grew.

Adan's calm demeanor broke at that moment, "I can't believe you would even think such a thing! It isn't me you have to worry about."

Her tears began to flow, "Now I don't have to fear you; but I fear that eventually you'll be just like the others—a cold, cruel, and uncaring slave to the Emperor. The snake has bitten and it will eventually consume you. What will be left of you after that?"

His fear grew exponentially at her mention of the Emperor. Visions of his beloved wife being brought before Lord Vader and interrogated flashed through Adan's mind. He quickly crossed the distance between them, grabbed her arms, and looked straight into her tearful blue eyes. Adan did not want to hurt her, but he wanted to get across how serious he was. "Listen to me Rema, you are to never speak that way again; not to me and especially not to anyone else!"

Rema stared back at her husband with pure shock and anguish. "Why? What will you do to me?"

Adan's face got inches from his wife's; he wanted her to understand how real the danger was. "I am working directly under Lord Vader and he has been given the authority to do whatever necessary to find the one who bombed the city platform and secure Imperial Center against any future attacks. He is deadly serious about finding and eliminating any treason within the Empire; and when I say deadly serious, I mean it to its fullest extent."

He released her arms, but still remained very close. "He has ordered a list of Imperial military officers whose families did not attend any of the Empire Day events. He thinks it's possible that the attack was done by someone inside the military, and that person would have warned their family to not leave their homes."

Rema buried her face into his chest momentarily as she processed what her husband had told her. Sobered, she looked back into Adan's eyes. Her voice was barely above a whisper as she spoke, "I had no idea. How dangerous is it for you?"

Adan bent down to kiss his wife on her forehead. "I'm not worried about me; it's you I worry about. I'm not certain how far Lord Vader will go, but I know he's very motivated to end treason within the Empire. I honestly don't think much will come of this list that he ordered, but I don't like the fact that he will be reading your name. The fact that you are saying these things scare me the most; don't share these opinions anymore—not even to me."

"Is that an order, Major?" She was very frightened, but still defiant.

Adan sighed loudly, "Rema, please..."

"I know better than to share certain beliefs outside these walls; I'm not stupid. I just never thought there would come a day when I had to watch what I say in my own home."

"I'm sorry," he knew there was nothing else he could say.

"Me too," Rema pointed to the food warmer. "Your meal is ready. I'm going to bed."

With that, she quickly made her way to the bedroom leaving Adan alone in the kitchen. _Please don't go down this road Rema; I can't lose you._

* * *

Moff Tarkin had been waiting for over an hour for an important communication. He was steadily getting more and more annoyed as the minutes passed. _How dare he be late!_ Finally, when the governor was about to give up and head for his temporary residence, the communication console in his office sounded an alert. It was audio only; much more secure than HoloNet. 

Accepting the communication, Tarkin immediately spoke. "I thought I told you to contact me at 0130. What part of that simple instruction did you not understand?"

"Governor, in case you missed it, there has been quite a lot going on today."

Tarkin's anger flared at the man's impertinence. "If I were you, I would be very careful. You are in a very precarious position; it would be a shame if you were exposed."

"It would certainly be a shame; a shame for you. What would happen to your little pet project?"

The governor seethed at the mocking tone he heard on the other end of the communication. As much as Tarkin hated it, the insolent man was right; his quest to expose Bail Organa's treason would have met an unfruitful end if he did not have his spy on the inside. He needed this man, at least for the moment. "What do you have to report?"

"Organa left the Consulate over an hour ago. Before then, he spent some time in his office and then left for a long meeting with Senator Mon Mothma."

Mon Mothma was another senator whose loyalty to the Empire was under suspicion. "Could they be romantically involved?"

Tarkin heard the man laugh. "Not Organa, he's a dedicated family man."

"So, what were they doing?"

"I don't know, the good senator doesn't exactly share those things with me."

Tarkin was furious, "You are highly placed at the Alderaanian consulate."

"Organa doesn't trust anyone, including those highly placed."

If he was before him, Tarkin would have probably have wrung this man's neck. "Then what good are you?"

"I'm working on slicing the consulate's most secure database and his private communications. It's slow going; the system is built like a fortress. For a culture of pacifists, we Alderaanians generally think the worst of people when it comes to our security philosophy."

"How much longer is this going to take." Tarkin's patience was quickly coming to an end. "I need that information!"

"It might go faster if you double my payment."

"Don't test me, you pathetic proletariat. You will get your money when you deliver what I asked for, and not for one credit more than agreed."

The man laughed, "You wound me with your words, Governor Tarkin. Attitudes like that might affect the quality of the information."

Tarkin decided right then and there that this man would not survive to spend any of his credits; he would get the information and then gleefully have this parasite killed. Until then, he needed him alive. "Timely and complete information may result in a bonus, but don't push it."

"It's been great doing business with you. I should have all the information on Bail Organa you would ever want in a few days; the bombing and the new security measures are not going to make things easy. With Lord Vader's new authority, he may find evidence of Organa's treason before I do."

Tarkin was furious at the thought of Vader getting the credit for discovering Organa's activities against the Empire. _That barely human freak of nature will not take the credit for this._ "See that he doesn't; find the information first. Oh, and before you even think about selling the information to Lord Vader for more credits, be warned that he will take a dim view of you trying to get credits from him; he'll torture you for the information and then kill you."

"I understand, more than you know."

Tarkin smiled mockingly, "It's really good that you do."

* * *

Sabé awoke to the sound of someone coming into the room from the main foyer. She had fallen asleep on one of the sofa in the main living room of their large, two story residence in Republica 500. Startled, she looked up in relief to see that it was her husband. "Jorran, you're finally home. What took you so long?" 

The ambassador sat down next to his wife on the sofa. "It has been crazy today. I've been working in the consulate most of the day."

Sabé sat up and looked at the wall chrono. "It's after 0300, I would think that the consulate staff had gone home by now."

"I had an important communication to make before I could come home."

Sabé nodded, "The children have been asking about you. I finally got them to bed."

"How are they?"

"They're old enough to know what happened; I can tell they are afraid." The destruction was very close to their residence; so close that it could be seen from the terrace. All day, her children had been asking her questions about what happened. She really had no answers to give them to help them make sense of such a horrible tragedy.

When Bail Organa brought Leia, much to Sabé's surprise, to the residence not very long after the attack, the children had something else to think about. They quickly took to the princess and she to them. "By the way, we had a quest tonight."

Jorran was curious, "who?"

"Princess Leia, Senator Organa brought her here after the attack. He didn't want to take her to the consulate after what happened. I helped her get ready for the Royal Ball last night and we became friends." Despite all that had happened today, the former handmaiden smiled at the memory of helping the senator's daughter and being around her today—_Padmé's daughter._

Ambassador Komour shook his head and looked distressed, "Sabé, you're not still thinking that Organa's adopted daughter is actually Senator Amidala's child?"

"Jorran, the more that I am with her, the more that I am convinced she is Padmé's child." Sabé decided to not tell her husband about the conversation that she had with the senator earlier; but it was that meeting and Bail Organa's strange aversion to her talking about Padmé that had completely convinced her of Leia's true identity.

Her husband sighed, "This is very dangerous, beloved."

Annoyed, Sabé got up from her place on the sofa, "Jorran, it's not like I'm going to tell her."

"Where is she?"

"Senator Organa picked her up about an hour ago." Sabé noticed that Jorran seemed to sigh in relief. "What's wrong with Leia being here?"

He smiled, "It's not that, my love. I just know that meeting Leia has opened up a wound for you."

"Jorran, the wound never closed; but being with Padmé's daughter has helped me so much in dealing with her death."

"Just be careful."

Sabé wondered if this was the only thing that he was upset about. She knew that something else was wrong. "What's the matter Jorran?"

"It's been a rough day."

"I know." Sabé reached out to grab Jorran's hand and smiled. "There's not much time before daybreak. Let's go to bed."

Despite all that had happened, Jorran grinned when he saw the twinkle in his wife's eyes. "If you insist, my lady."

* * *

Typho was glad that bars on Coruscant never closed; even during the most extreme circumstances. He remembered that even during the CIS attack on the planet, no bar closed their doors. Typho was never more grateful of the population's devotion to drinking than he was now. 

Ever since the bomb went off, Typho had been to several bars throughout the middle and undercity of Coruscant. He never drank anything, he could not afford to get drunk, no matter how much he may have wanted to. He was going to those places for one purpose only, to get caught.

It was the same at every bar. He would come in, watch HoloNet news for a while, then buy everyone a round of drinks, and when everyone was paying attention he would start speaking against the Empire and praising those who attacked it. Usually, the reaction of the crowd was anger and a quick exit was necessary.

He was certain that, by doing this, word of this would filter to the Imperial authorities and a squadron of stormtroopers would be sent to apprehend him. It had not happened quickly enough for Typho's taste.

He wanted to get this over with; it was time to accomplish what he really came to Coruscant to do—kill Darth Vader. He still had the tiny EMP device hidden on his person which would, if everything worked out right, destroy all the electronic devices within a confined area. He knew he would be taken to Vader, and that monstrosity was mostly made of electronics; it would kill that beast.

Typho tried very hard to only think of anything but revenge. If he, for one moment, did not fill his mind with thoughts of revenge he would think of other things; and that was very dangerous. If he did not obsess over killing Vader, he would think about the thousands that he killed. He would be haunted by the thought of all the innocent children whose lives were snuffed out in an instant. _It's an acceptable loss, if it leads to Vader being destroyed. At least they won't have to grow up under tyranny._

He had been in this bar for about an hour, it was time to make his move. Pushing all other thoughts out of his mind, Typho got up and repeated what he had done for hours in bars all across Coruscant. He hoped his efforts would pay off soon and the accursed Imperials would discover him. He wanted his revenge soon.


	16. Chapter 15

_**Chapter 15:**_

The sound of the chrono's alarm woke Senator Organa from his restless sleep. After picking Leia up from the Komour's around 0200 and bringing her to his residence, he spent most of the remaining night staring at the ceiling of his bedroom. His restless mind would not allow him any sleep for a long time. Finally, he drifted off to sleep only to be awoken two hours later.

A part of him wanted to remain in bed and try to forget the events of yesterday, but his sense of duty would not allow that. He had to go to work and face the fact that the few remaining freedoms the Empire enjoyed were being quickly stripped away by Lord Vader. He knew that the new regulations enacted that he read the previous night were only the beginning. Vader was given, pretty much, absolute authority to secure Coruscant in any way he saw fit. Bail shuddered to think what was next.

As he got ready, he thought about Leia. He knew that the planetary lockdown would probably last for weeks. He was going to have to figure out what to do with her during the day. He knew that Sabé Komour would be happy to take care of Leia, but Bail did not like her being around her biological mother's former handmaiden. He thought back to their conversation a couple of days prior; she acted very odd. _I wonder if she suspects._

The idea that Lady Komour suspected that Leia was Padmé's daughter frightened Bail very much. It was unlikely, but not out of the realm of possibility. That was all the more reason for Leia to not spend much time with the woman; it was too dangerous. He decided that he would take his daughter to the consulate today and figure out other arrangements at another time.

Bail made his way to Leia's bedroom and found her still asleep. He noticed she was twitching slightly while dreaming. He was curious what she was dreaming about; whatever it was, it did not look like it was a good dream. She was moving around like it was a nightmare.

He gently put his hand on her forehead, "Wake up Princess, it's time to get up."

It took a little more coaxing before Leia was broken from her dream world. She jerked suddenly as her eyes flew open. For a moment, she had a look of anguish on her face that broke Bail's heart. He hated to see her like this, even if the cause of her fear was only a nightmare. "Leia, you're safe now. You're with your father."

Leia finally registered Bail's presence, but she was still slightly disoriented. "Father, it's so horrible."

"It was only a nightmare." He gently picked Leia up and held her.

She clung to him and began to cry. "I was locked up in a holding cell; someone hurt me really badly and I couldn't get away."

Bail rocked her gently as she wept, "It's all right, no one will hurt you; I won't let them."

Leia began to cry even harder, "You were gone, mother was gone, everyone was gone and I was so alone. No one was there to protect me."

"It was just a dream." He had never seen his daughter this upset over a nightmare before.

"It seemed so real." Leia whispered as the tears continued to flow.

"Some dreams are like that, but they pass in time."

Leia stiffened slightly, "You don't understand Father, it was not like any dream I've had before."

"You're probably just worried because of the things that have happened since you arrived." She had been through a lot. She had been arrested and questioned by Lord Vader and she had been very close to yesterday's bombing. _That has to be it._

Then, a long suppressed memory suddenly emerged. He remembered Yoda telling Obi-Wan that Anakin had come to him about dreams he was having that he believed were visions. The dreams were of pain and loss; the two Jedi believed that he was dreaming about Padmé's death. Bail wanted to believe that Leia was just having a nightmare, but with her biological father's history with dreams, regretfully, he had to entertain the possibility that it was more than just a dream.

Finally, Leia's tears stopped and her shaking subsided. She looked up at her father and smiled bravely, "I'm all right now."

Putting aside all thoughts of Vader and Force visions, Bail returned the smile. "That's good, you need to get ready. We have to be at the consulate in about an hour."

Leia frowned, "Do I have to be there all day?"

"Yes, I can't leave you alone all day."

Bail could tell that Leia was on the verge of pouting; a trait that he and Breha were working hard to correct in their daughter. "Can I stay with Sabé and her kids?"

"No, you will have to see Lady Komour at another time." He stressed the use of Sabé's official title. Bail was very uncomfortable with Leia being so familiar with Padmé's former handmaiden.

Before Leia had a chance to show her displeasure, Bail stopped her. "Listen to me, because of what happened yesterday you are going to be on Coruscant for a few more weeks. They aren't going to be easy weeks. I will make better arrangements; but for the next few days, at least, you will have to go with me to the Consulate."

Bail could tell that his daughter was extremely displeased, but she was holding in her feelings regarding the subject. "All right." Leia then looked away for a moment, seemingly unsure, then returned her gaze to Bail. "Father, why did someone want to kill all those people?"

He had expected this question eventually, but Bail was still not ready to answer. Of course, if Soldiers of the Republic were the ones who did it, the senator knew the political and revolutionary logic that was behind it, no matter how flawed. However, the question was much deeper than that, much deeper than Leia knew. Bail could not imagine why anyone would kill thousands randomly. _What did they tell themselves to make it all right to indiscriminately murder the innocent? Do they even sleep at night?_ _There is no justice in this._

Knowing that Leia was still waiting, Bail answered the question as best he could. "I don't know what went on in their minds and hearts. I'm sure they thought they had a reason, even though what they did was murder. There are some who have done terrible things because they believed that their cause was right."

He could not help but think of the last mass murder in his memory. _I wonder what he told himself to make it all right to kill his brother and sister Jedi. How much convincing did he require from Palpatine to commit that horrendous act? Did he hesitate at all before striking the first blow? What was he thinking when he saw the frightened faces of the younglings? Did he even try to justify it to himself?_

Looking down at Leia's innocent face, it was hard for him to imagine that she shared DNA with such a monster. For many years, Bail had tried hard not to think about the fact that Leia's biological father is Darth Vader; but in the last few days, he could not escape that fact.

"Father, what's wrong? You look sad."

Another disturbing fact that he could not escape was that Leia's skills of perception had been growing by leaps and bounds in the days she had been on Coruscant. He did not want to believe that her perception was aided by the Force, but he knew it was true. He wanted her off this planet quickly, but that was not possible. "I'm just a little tired. I didn't sleep much last night."

Leia looked at her father like she knew he was not telling the complete truth, but she decided to let it go. "When do we leave for the consulate?"

Bail smiled, happy for the change of subject. "Like I said, we have to be there in about an hour. You need to get ready."

* * *

Vader had been back on the _Devastator_ for the last few hours for suit maintenance. Usually, he would spend this time in meditation but today his mind refused to rest. There was so much to do and very little time to do it.

He finally had his chance to make Imperial Center the way it always should have been. The bombing had given him an unexpected opportunity and Vader was not going to let it go to waste. For many years he had been imploring his master for this kind of authority; the capital was full of traitors and he wanted to expose and ruthlessly remove them.

There was no place for leniency in running an Empire. The longer the residual policies of the old corrupt Republic remained, the longer it would take for the people to truly accept the new order. The Sith believed that there must be a clean break from the old traditions; and finally he had been given the opportunity to facilitate that.

Vader wished that this new authority he had been given was not because of the bombing. The attacked caused much chaos, and the he hated chaos. He was still not certain if his master knew of the attack beforehand. If he did, Vader believed that the Emperor allowing so many deaths for the purpose of tightening his grip was excessive and unnecessary. The new reforms should have been implemented immediately after Sidious declared himself Emperor.

For the moment, the Sith apprentice tried not to focus on what his master may or may not have known; there would be another time for that. He had to focus on his many tasks at hand. Thus far, the investigation into the bombing had yielded very few results, but Vader's sense through the Force told him that he was getting closer. Very soon the bomber would be revealed, he knew that without a shadow of a doubt.

The next step was to figure out who funded this operation A massive amount of credits had to have been necessary to pull this off successfully. Tests indicated that the explosive used was a highly expensive compound only available to the very rich or the military. The only non-governmental source for these kinds of credits had to have been one of the many royal families.

Vader drew up a list of suspect royal families throughout the Empire who would have the resources necessary to fund the attack; and one family was at the top of the list—the Organas. Bail Organa was an outspoken opponent of Palpatine while he was Supreme Chancellor and a member of the treasonous "Delegation of 2000." Vader decided that, while the diplomatic consulates' of the other suspects would be searched by teams of officers and stormtroopers, he would search the Alderaanian consulate personally.

He knew Bail Organa was afraid of something. During the Royal Ball, when the Emperor spoke to Leia, his fear had approached panic. Vader could never determine the exact source of his fear, but Vader knew that it was much deeper than nervousness over Leia being spoken to by the ruler of the galaxy. There was something the senator did not want discovered. _I will find out just what that is. _

* * *

Sama Lus could not sleep; sleep was something only reserved for those who could afford several hours of idleness. The new head of Soldiers of the Republic had been preparing her people for a move that would take them from one Outer-Rim hellhole to another. It was a move out of pure desperation; Typho's betrayal had made it necessary for their survival.

The Empire would be coming for them soon; it was only a matter of time before Typho was caught. She knew that he was most likely still on Coruscant; the planetary lockdown went into effect seconds after the explosion. The kind of device that was used to set off the explosives used a remotely controlled trigger mechanism. Typho would have had to actually been on the planet's surface for it to work. Since he was still on the planet, it increased his chances of being caught exponentially; especially now that Darth Vader himself was in charge of securing the capital.

For a brief moment, Sama held onto the hope that maybe Typho was killed in the blast or he committed suicide to keep from being caught. As much as that would have solved the group's problems, she knew that they could not count on that. They would have to proceed on the assumption that Typho was alive and could be arrested at any time. When that happened, he would most likely be interrogated and their location would be extracted. They needed to leave very soon.

A voice interrupted her thoughts, "Sama, how are you going this long without sleep?"

Annoyed at the interruption, she looked up into her comrade's concerned face. He had been pestering her for hours to get some rest. "Stimulants are wonderful things in the middle of a crisis."

Matt Khaar sat down next to her, "You know how dangerous those things are."

In frustration, Sama threw down the datapad she had been working on for the last hour. "They are no more dangerous than being on Vader's most wanted list."

"We knew the risks when we went down this course."

"The only reason that I voted in favor of the operation on Coruscant was because Typho agreed to hit the Royal Ball. That would have knocked out the Emperor and those traitorous royals along with him. I even heard that Vader was at the ball as well. The explosion would have taken them both out."

Sama stood up and began pacing the confines of her small office; the stimulants she had taken less than an hour ago were making her slightly twitchy. "Now, we are running scared when we should be celebrating Palpatine's death. We were fools to believe Typho; I was a fool."

"You were not the only one who trusted him, every one of us did." Matt reminded her gently.

Sama briefly looked down at her shaking hands. She wondered if they were trembling because of the stimulants or because of fear. She then turned around to face her friend again. "Why do you think he did it? Why would he attack a civilian target when all it accomplished was the strengthening of his regime?"

"I don't know, no one but he can answer that."

"I don't understand, he hated Vader with a passion; much more than he hated the Emperor." Sama was beginning to feel exhaustion creep up on her; she would need another stimulant soon if she was to continue her work. "Did we want revenge so badly that we blinded ourselves to what Typho was?"

Suddenly, a sense of oppressive hopelessness came down upon her. "Matt, we're not going to survive this. There's not going to be a massive resistance springing up from the ashes of the Republic; no glorious revolution in defense of democracy. Tyranny will become accepted when there is no one left who remembers anything different."

Matt got up, crossed the room, and stood in front of Sama, "Alone, we will never survive this. Perhaps we don't have to do this alone."

Sama looked up in surprise, "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that there are other groups out there with the same desires as ours."

She could not believe what she was hearing; the other groups fought each other more than they did the Empire. Their goals were all different; some of them did not even want a return of the Republic. "What do you mean? All of the groups that have spent the last eight years hurling verbal shots at each other should just sit down, hammer out our differences, and unite."

Matt smiled, "Exactly."

"It will never work, especially now!"

"I've heard rumors that there is even a group of senators who are working against the Emperor. If we could somehow contact them, that would be a very good start. They are the only ones who have the amount of credits and recourses necessary to begin a rebellion."

Sama wanted to laugh, "I have heard those rumors too, Matt. So far, this group of senators have done absolutely nothing!"

"Maybe they're biding their time."

She could not believe that he was actually serious about this insane proposal. "Yes, biding their time while the galaxy burns. This is certainly a group that I want to be involved in," Sama replied sarcastically.

Matt put his hands on her shoulders, "Sama, we either unite with other groups or we all need to go our separate ways. Even if we survive Vader's inquisition, we will at best be a minor nuisance to the Empire."

The wisdom in Matt's words was undeniable, but she could not see how an alliance could be formed. "I wouldn't even know how to begin. Despite the faith you and the others have shown in me, I'm not cut out to be the leader."

"I'm here to help you then. I've never spoken of this before because I knew that the prospect of our group working with another was not popular among the ranks of Soldiers of the Republic, but I do know a few beings that might be able to help us."

"Who are these beings?"

"I don't want to say who there are now, until I know for sure. I don't want to expose the entire group."

Sama was very reluctant to agree, especially after Matt told her that he could not tell her the details yet. She wanted very much to trust Matt, but she was very wary after Typho's betrayal. However, something told her that she needed to put her trust in him; it was the only way they would have a chance of surviving. "All right," she agreed. The tone to Sama's voice then changed to a pleading whisper. "Please don't be lying to me, I don't think I can stand another betrayal."

Matt kissed Sama on the forehead, "I promise you, all the stars in the galaxy will burn out before I will willingly betray you."

Caught in the intensity of Matt's eyes, Sama leaned in closer to him as he bent down for another kiss, this one much more intimate. Time seemed to stop as they kissed; this certainly was the last thing she expected. She had worked with Matt for many years but never thought their relationship would ever be more than friendly professionalism; but here in the middle of a crisis such magnitude that would probably end with their deaths, she found there was much more between them. _Professionalism be damned._

Their kiss ended and Matt smiled broadly. "You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that."

Despite the seriousness of the events surrounding them, Sama could not help but laugh. "Why didn't you do this before we were marked for death?"

"I'm slow, I guess." Keeping his gaze firmly with hers, Matt returned to the subject at hand. "I will make my contacts, hopefully they will listen to me. Until then, we still need to leave this planet."

"I know, the preparations are nearly complete. Matt, I hope you're not going on a fool's errand."

"Me too, Sama, but we can't do this alone. The only way the Empire is going to be defeated is if there's unity among the dissident groups. Until then, the Emperor's power will only increase into he chokes the life out of the galaxy."

* * *

For the third time in the past hour Bail saw Leia running down the hall past his open office door. He did not want to stop her, he was happy to finally see her having a good time and not sulking like she was when they first arrived today. However, he did not want her to run into anyone or hurt herself. "Leia," Bail called from his office.

Breathlessly, Leia ran into the office. "Don't call my name so loud, I don't want them to hear you. I'm playing hide-and-seek."

Bail laughed, "With whom, little one?"

"With Artoo and Threepio, of course!"

It did his heart good to see Leia still able to be a child. He knew that she would grow up too soon; he was glad that the inevitable could be delayed just a little while longer. "I didn't know that was in their programming."

Leia giggled, "No, Threepio keeps telling me that games are not his primary function. I think Artoo likes to play though; he's really good at hiding!"

"You can have your fun, but try not to run through the halls. You may run into someone; or disturb someone who is working."

Leia looked down at her feet guiltily. "I'm sorry, I won't run again." She then smiled again, "Can I walk really fast?"

Bail laughed, "Yes, walking really fast is allowed; just don't collide with anyone."

"Thank you Father." She then came closer to her father's desk and looked down at the various datapads. "What are you working on?"

"Things you wouldn't be interested in."

Leia continued to gaze at the many datapads, she pointed to one of them on the edge of the desk. "What's that one all about? 'Imperial edit 30291-281, new security regulations to be implemented immediately.'" She read with interest. "What does 'eyes only' mean?"

Bail quickly snatched the datapad away from his daughter's gaze, startling Leia very much with his sudden intensity. "That means that you're not allowed to see it."

"I'm sorry; I didn't know."

He took a deep breath, "It's all right; it's just that there are certain documents only senators are allowed to read."

Leia smiled at Bail; it was the same half-smile that always made him very uncomfortable. It reminded him too much of Anakin Skywalker for him to be at ease. "Then I'll just have to get elected Senator someday and I'll get to read all I want."

Bail knew that Leia was not serious, but he did not like the idea of his precious daughter entering the Imperial Senate. It was a job that was very lethal for her biological mother; and he did not want Leia to even have the chance of following in Padmé's footsteps. He did not know how to respond; he certainly did not want to encourage this.

He did not have to respond; he suddenly heard much commotion down the hall. One of the consulate staff ran into the room, "Senator, we just received word. Lord Vader is on his way to search the consulate. He claims it's lawful."

The senator's heart began pounding fast and his breathing became shallow. For a moment, he thought that he was going to faint, but he recovered and got hold of his raging emotions. Bail looked down at the datapad that he still held in his hand; the datapad that gave Vader all the authority he needed to conduct this search. He wanted to break the offending piece of plastisteel. "When will he be here?"

As if to answer the question, another aide ran down the hallway. "Vader is here along with a dozen stormtroopers, he is demanding the entire staff to congregate in the main lobby."

The senator addressed the staff members that were beginning to gather in his office. "All right, everyone needs to be respectful and obedient. Do not speak unless you are spoken to directly. He has the authority to do this, and more. As most of you probably know, Lord Vader is not the most patient man; be very careful. Let's go."

As the staff began reluctantly filing out of the office, Bail bent down to meet Leia on her level. "I wish you didn't have to be here for this. Will you be all right?"

Leia nodded and then smiled bravely, "I will be fine."

Bail took his daughter's hand and began leading her toward the main lobby. "Let's go, we mustn't keep Lord Vader waiting."


	17. Chapter 16

_**Chapter 16:**_

Darth Vader could feel the fear in the room as the staff of the Alderaanian consulate gathered, as per orders, in the main foyer. If Lord Sidious was there, he would no doubt be greatly enjoying this. However, the Sith apprentice was unlike his master in many ways; Vader never enjoyed the fear and suffering of others. He did what he must to keep the Empire strong and to serve his master but he never took pleasure in killing, maiming, or causing terror; he did not think much about those things at all.

To Lord Sidious, causing terror was very pleasurable. Other beings' fear, pain, and hatred were drugs to him, and he relished causing those feelings in others. He seemed to actually feed on the strong feelings of others.

While his master enjoyed the pain of others, Vader was completely indifferent to it. Sidious would grin like a gleeful schoolboy when he heard someone begging for mercy, but his apprentice would not think anything of it. He had never seen the need to feed off of other beings; he had enough pain and hatred of his own to fuel his power for decades.

Bail Organa was the last to arrive, along with the princess. Vader again was amazed by how much untapped potential there was in the girl. Her brightness in the Force was such that it made the Sith more than a little uncomfortable. It seemed that the girl's presence in the Force was becoming stronger; Vader wondered if she was showing signs of Force abilities. He remembered from his early teachings that powers can lie dormant when a Force sensitive is not exposed to any others who are strong in the Force.

Vader knew that it was the proximity to him and his master that was most likely causing the princess' increased presence. That meant that he was going to have to work even harder to hide her Force signature from the Emperor if he was to be able to take her as his own apprentice in the future. Vader was well aware that if she was to go before Sidious now, without his powers shielding her, his master would either have her killed or recruit her for his service.

The Sith noticed Bail Organa's protective hands on the princess' shoulders. The senator was very afraid; his fear was understandable. Vader suspected that Organa had something to hide. However, there was more to it than simple fear of discovery. There was something deeper there; much deeper than a cursory mind probe could detect.

"By the authority given to me by the Emperor, I have ordered a search of this consulate. All documents and records will be made available and all staff members will be questioned."

The senator flinched slightly at Vader's announcement, and he barely retained control over his emotions. The Sith apprentice could feel anger, fear, and finally resignation from him. "I would like it to be known that I will file an official protest; this is a violation of Alderaan's sovereignty."

Vader stalked closer to the senator, so close that the princess gasped in fear at his proximity. "Any remaining sovereignty that your planet may have is at the Emperor's discretion, and it can be taken away at will. You should know this, Senator. That provision was in the proposal that dissolved the Republic; which, if I recall correctly, you voted to affirm."

This time, Organa did not flinch. "The Imperial Senate will not stand for this."

"I think you will find the Imperial Senate quite agreeable to the Emperor's demands." Vader turned to the personnel he brought with him to facilitate the search. "Begin immediately. I want every record searched and extensive background checks performed on every member of the consulate's staff.

* * *

"Artoo Deetoo! Where are you going? The main foyer is in the other direction!" The golden protocol droid had been trying to explain to his counterpart that they were expected to gather with the rest of the consulate staff; but the small droid had other plans. "You cause me so much trouble sometimes, I wonder why I even bother with you." 

Artoo beeped a short response, but remained on the move away from where he was supposed to go.

"What do you mean? Why can't we go to the foyer? The order was clear; all staff are to gather in the main foyer." The golden droid raised his arms in frustration. "They will melt us down if we do not obey."

The astromech droid continued toward the main computer room with Threepio still following behind him. He beeped out another statement to the protocol droid as he made his way to a computer console and plugged himself in.

"You have different order? From Senator Organa? I never received such orders. When was your last maintenance check? You are most certainly malfunctioning if you think he would give you a special order and not me. I am the one programmed to interact with humans, you are only a mechanic."

As he was working, the astromech droid gave a loud snort of disapproval, followed by a series of excited chirps.

"Take that back, you overweight blob of grease!"

Artoo continued to work, despite the protests of his protocol droid counterpart. When he was finished, he chirped out one more message.

"You're sorry? What do you mean by that?"

Suddenly, an electric surge overloaded the console that Threepio was standing beside which caused a large electric charge to flow through the protocol droid. He crashed hard on the ground, completely inoperable until maintenance could get to him.

The astromech droid rolled up to his fallen comrade and sounded a regretful but agitated tone. From Artoo's body, a cable shot out and attached to Threepio. He used it to drag the protocol droid to a hidden area behind the main computer consoles in hopes of not being seen.

* * *

Bail knew that Vader had tried to probe his mind for information. Thanks to the techniques Master Yoda had taught him before he went into exile, the senator had some knowledge on how to counter them. 

Of course, he was well aware that if Vader really wanted to get information from him, he could do so. A full Sith mind probe, not the cursory glance that Vader had done, would violently rip the information from his head and most likely leave him in a vegetative state afterwards.

No matter what new authority Vader might have been granted, Bail knew that there was not enough evidence to warrant a full interrogation. The Emperor was evil to his very bones, but he was also a master politician; and Organa was still a very popular figure in galactic politics. His sudden death at the hands of the Empire would cause a stir among many. For Bail to be declared a traitor, there would have to be overwhelming evidence to support it; he was confident that Vader would not find that sort of evidence here.

There was much more to be concerned with. Bail looked down to see Leia standing bravely in front of the Sith Lord. Her momentary gasp a few minutes earlier when Vader moved in closer was an aberration and she quickly got control over her fear. He was very proud of her.

Of course, he wished that she did not have to be here for this, and he inwardly kicked himself for not letting Lady Komour care for her this day. Bail Organa did not want Leia anywhere near Vader. The more he saw her, the chance of the Sith finding out his deepest secret increased exponentially. Bail wondered how Vader had not seen the resemblance between Leia and her biological mother. Master Yoda told him that the dark side clouds everything; the senator wondered if it was Vader's mind that was truly clouded.

As Vader's men swarmed throughout the consulate, Bail noted that his staff was doing very well, considering the circumstances. They were all true Alderaanians; no acts of tyranny would intimidate them. All of them stood with their heads held high, not allowing their fear to get the best of them, even though they were all going to be facing questioning by Imperial military personnel.

The senator was aware that, most likely, his staff would not be subject to questioning from Vader himself. It would take too long for one man to individually question the two dozen staff and support personnel. Bail was very grateful for that small mercy--a mercy that he himself would not be granted. He began to prepare himself for his inevitable encounter with the Sith.

Finally, Vader left the main foyer and moved into another part of the consulate. An audible sign of relief could be heard from his staff. There were still stormtroopers there, watching their every move; but at least they would not have to hear the Sith's ominous mechanical breathing.

Bending down to her level, Bail addressed his daughter. "How are you doing?"

Leia shrugged and nodded. "I'm fine, I guess. Lord Vader is a little scary, especially when he gets so close."

Bail could not help but smile, "That he is, my dear."

Leia moved in closer to her father to whisper. "Lord Vader is going to question everyone?"

"Only me and my staff, and most of them won't be questioned by Vader." Bail was reminded again that Leia had already endured the Sith's questioning a few days earlier. She did not speak much about it, but he knew she was still disturbed by the experience.

Leia's eyes began to tear up, "What about you?"

Bail pulled his daughter into a hug, "Don't worry about me."

"I have to worry, Father!" Leia's emotions were running high. "You don't understand!"

Not wanting his daughter's sudden outburst to become a public spectacle, especially with stormtroopers present, Bail led Leia to the far corner of the room. He was thankful that the Imperial guards allowed them their privacy. "It will be fine, Vader will just ask a few questions. When he's satisfied that I have nothing to hide, he will let me go and leave."

Leia's tears were flowing freely, "What if he tries to get in your head, like he did me? Father, it's so horrible when he does that!"

There was the root of Leia's fear; she was afraid that her father would have to endure the horror of a mind probe, as she had to endure. Bail's anger surged at the thought of what Vader had done to Leia. He knew that the Sith did not use all of the power at his disposal to perform the probe on Leia; if he did, Bail would not be speaking to her right now. However, the mental probe that she experienced was much more powerful than what he experienced a few moments earlier.

She was not fearful for herself, she was terrified of Bail going through what she had to endure; and her fear was bordering on panic. Bail was not sure what to do, he had never seen his daughter like this. He could see her entire body shaking as she wept in terror. He embraced her in another hug, hoping that she would be comforted. "Leia, I will be fine, please try to calm down."

Bail was heartbroken when he heard her muffled sobs after she buried her head in his shoulder. Not knowing what else to do, he just let her cry. Finally, she calmed down and looked up into her father's eyes. "I'm so sorry."

He gave his most reassuring smile, "It's all right, I understand why you are so afraid. Don't worry, my dear, in a few hours this will all be over." Bail hoped that the events of the day would prove that statement to be true.

Before Leia could respond, the senator heard the sound of Vader's breathing getting louder as he approached. His daughter's increased tension testified to the fact that she heard it as well. She wiped her tears, stood up straight, and faced the Sith bravely as he entered the room. With him present, she would force herself to be strong.

Vader made his way to where Bail and Leia were standing. When he approached, he stopped suddenly and looked down at the princess. As he gazed at her, he seemed to ignore everything around him and only focused on Leia for what seemed like an eternity to Bail.

Wanting the attention off of his daughter, the senator addressed the Sith, "Lord Vader, as you can see, we have been more than cooperative."

That seemed to break Vader out of his reverie. His gaze went from Leia to Bail. "We will see, Senator Organa." He turned to the military personnel he brought with him. "Begin the staff interviews immediately." As his men were obeying their orders, Vader gave one final glance to Leia and quickly walked out of the room again.

Bail led Leia to where the remaining staff were waiting. Ambassador Komour, who had arrived shortly after Vader's unannounced visit, walked over to stand beside the senator. "I will submit an official diplomatic protest regarding this outrage."

"I appreciate it, but it will not do any good. Vader has all the authority he needs to do this; I'm actually surprised he waited this long to begin searching consulates, especially ours."

Bail was well aware of the many rumors of his disloyalty that circulated throughout Imperial government circles. However, he suspected that there was a much more personal reason behind Vader's actions concerning him. Bail was a good friend of Padmé Amidala, and he always wondered if Vader suspected them to have been more than friends. During the turbulent weeks before the fall of the Republic, the way Anakin Skywalker acted towards the senator made him wonder if the Jedi had personal issues against him.

He did spend a lot of time with Padmé, and they were both vocal detractors of Palpatine's power-grabbing; something that Skywalker did not agree with. Bail could not help but believe that Alderaan's singling out as a target of Vader's unannounced raid had something to do with his friendship with Padmé.

Jorran Komour shook his head in disgust. "Still, I want it to be said that we protest this outrageous attack against our sovereignty."

Lieutenant Sobrel approached the two men. "Gentlemen, may I suggest that this conversation be continued at another time." He purposefully glanced at the stormtroopers guarding the room. As head of royal security, it was his duty to protect the royal family against all threats. Speaking openly about this topic was dangerous, especially with Lord Vader in the other room.

Bail agreed wholeheartedly. Komour was rightfully outraged at the situation; but as the newly appointed ambassador, he was unaware of the realities of living on Coruscant, the belly of the Imperial beast. "Of course, we will discuss this later."

The senator turned to his security chief, "Lieutenant, I want you to look after Leia while I'm with Lord Vader. It shouldn't be long, but I don't want her to be alone during this."

"Of course, Senator Organa."

Bail hesitated giving his next order, especially with Leia so close; but he had to plan for all contingencies. Not wanting her to hear it, he took out a datapad and entered a message: _"If something happens to me, you are personally responsible for getting my daughter back to Alderaan. Protect her at all costs."_

After reading the message, Sobrel nodded, "It will be done." The Lieutenant looked down at the princess, she was pretending to not be interested in what was on the datapad; but not doing a very good job of it. "Do you think that will be necessary?"

"I hope not, Lieutenant."

Vader's breathing again heralded his arrival and ended all conversations in the room. "Senator Organa, I will speak with you now."

* * *

Major Nol had been staring at the datapad for nearly a half-hour. He could not stall any longer; he was going to have to submit this information to Lord Vader. There was no possible way that he could avoid it; Vader would soon receive a list of the families of Imperial military personnel that did not make an appearance at any Empire Day celebration. 

For the tenth time since he had received it, Adan scrolled the list to his wife's name. Lord Vader would be reading his beloved's name on a list of possible suspect connections; the very thought made him nearly sick with fear.

It would not have been so bad if Rema was a supporter of the Empire and her loyalty could be proven; that was not the case. She was not a supporter; her words the previous night proved it without a shadow of a doubt.

He thought back to the events of the night before. In the years that he had known her, he had never seen Rema so open about her dislike of the Empire. Sure, she never outwardly expressed her admiration of the Emperor, but she had never said such treasonous things.

_Treasonous! _That was a word that he never thought he would ever associate with his wife. While he did not want to admit it, he knew that what she said against the Emperor the night before would be considered treason to many people, including Vader. If she ever shared her beliefs with the wrong people, she would receive some very unwanted Imperial attention.

He begged her the night before to never express those opinions again, even to him. He knew that what he said greatly hurt her. This morning she had barely spoken two words to him as they ate breakfast. She was not only hurt, she was very angry with him. He hated it, but she had to be made to understand what kind of danger she was in.

He thought back to what she had told him as he made his way out of the door this morning, _"Adan, please don't dismiss my concerns for you. I love you, and I know what this job is doing to you."_

He remembered snapping back in frustration, _"I'm not a monster, Rema!"_

Her response sent shivers down his spine, _"Not yet."_

_Are her fears groundless?_ That was the question that Nol had been wrestling with all morning. He knew that he was not the idealistic young man that he was when he joined the military academy. His first assignment after graduation had destroyed that. The idea, however, that he would eventually become a monster was absurd; but he still could not shake the feeling that Rema's fears were not without merit.

There were some officers that he had known since his academy days that were something completely different than what they had been when he had first met them. They were not the men that they used to be; they had changed for the worst. They were greedy, cold, and focused on nothing but their own careers at the expense of everything else.

One of them had even gone so far to report his toddler Force-sensitive niece to the Empire in exchange for a promotion and a better assignment. From what Adan heard, the child was snatched from her mother's arms, while the child's father, who resisted the stormtroopers, was shot and killed.

It made him sick to think that someone would actually betray their very own families for their career, but there were many in the Imperial military officer core who would do it in a heartbeat.

_What if Rema's treasonous words become actions? What would I do then? Would I then report my own wife?_ The officer in him knew that he was obligated to report the treason of anyone, including family members. _Could I actually do that?_

Adan dropped the datapad and buried his head into his hands. He never thought there would ever come a day when he would have to choose between his wife and the Empire. He knew what was expected; the Emperor expected devotion to him and his government to supercede any devotion to family.

Looking up, he noticed the only personal element that he had in his office, the small holo of his wife and son. Nol was surprised that Vader had not taken it away or destroyed it while he was using the office; personal touches in military offices were generally frowned upon.

He pressed the activation switch and the image of his smiling wife holding Tomas appeared. He remembered that it was her smile that he first fell in love with. They met while he was a sophomore at the academy on field training maneuvers on her home planet.

He and a few of his classmates were exploring the many bars of the capital city on one off-duty night when they met for the first time. They met by him accidentally bumping into her on the street and knocking her purchases out of her hands. As Adan was apologizing profusely, Rema flashed him a smile and he was madly in love with her ever since.

_I couldn't choose the Empire over my wife._ The thought was out there before he had a chance to rein it in. He was horrified that it crossed his mind. _I just committed treason._ The treason he committed was only in his mind, but Nol understood that thoughts many times became actions under the right circumstances.

_What am I thinking?_ Adan was glad that Lord Vader was not on the premises at the moment. He still was not certain if Vader could read minds, but he could not afford to take the chance. He looked down again at the datapad with the information he was required to transmit.

For a brief second he considered deleting his wife's name from the list, but then he quickly dismissed it. Imperial Intelligence was still in possession of the unaltered list; if Vader discovered the discrepancy both he and Rema would be immediately taken into custody and given a full interrogation. He thought about the interrogations that he had witnessed over the years, especially the recent ones performed by Lord Vader. Deleting Rema's name off the list would almost guarantee her having to endure such horrors.

_I can't believe I'm considering such things!_ Adan knew that these thoughts should not cross the mind of an Imperial officer. He was never to even think about altering official reports to help a family member. The Empire was supposed to be his first duty, and he tried to remind himself of that.

Knowing that he had no other choice, Nol pressed the "transmit" button which instantly sent the report to Lord Vader. He tried to console himself with the knowledge that the information he sent would most likely lead nowhere and that Vader was grasping at straws when he asked for the report.

Adan considered what he was going to do about Rema. _I must keep her in line, it's the only way to protect her._

* * *

Bail was escorted by a stormtrooper into his very own office. _He wants to question me here?_ When he arrived, Vader was standing behind the senator's desk waiting for him. "Please, take a seat." 

_I can't even sit in my own chair._ Knowing that he had much more to be worried about than an office takeover, Bail sat down in the chair facing his desk. Bail's first impulse was to assure Vader that he had nothing to hide, but he stopped knowing that the Sith would instantly be more suspicious than he already was. Usually those with something to hide were the first to declare their innocence without prompting. "Lord Vader, I trust that everything is proceeding to your satisfaction."

Vader picked up a datapad that was lying on the desk. "Senator Organa, the technicians have just completed a thorough analysis of the consulate's database. Were you aware that someone recently has attempted to slice your information system multiple times?"

Bail was floored; this was not what he expected. He had absolutely no idea what Vader was talking about. He had no knowledge of anyone trying to slice the consulate's system; it was a puzzling and disturbing development. _Who would do this and for what purpose?_ "I had no idea, Lord Vader."

"Indeed. Maybe your staff is not as loyal as you once believed?"

"I will get to the bottom of this." He could not image anyone on his staff doing this. _It has to be someone from the outside; but who?_ His first thought that it might have been the Empire; but if it was, Vader would not have alerted him to it. He was so focused on this new problem that the senator almost forgot that Vader was still standing there.

"I also discovered that you and your daughter were close to the site of the attack; you only escaped it by mere moments."

_Oh no!_ "Yes, we must have gotten lucky." Bail had no idea how to safely the answer the question.

Vader bent down slightly, his massive frame seemed to envelop the desk. "It is my experience that there is no such thing as luck." He then straightened up again, "Were you warned in advance of the attack?"

"No, Lord Vader, if I had advance knowledge of the attack I wouldn't have brought my daughter to the exact location that it was to occur." Bail tried to keep the emotion out of his voice, but was finding it hard to do so.

Vader ignored Bail's answer, "This sort of attack would have required much funding. Tell me, are we going to find financial discrepancies when your personal accounts are reviewed?"

The senator had always been very careful with his personal financial transactions, especially those having to do with the Organization. Usually, Organization activities were paid for by allocating Senate funds to certain "charitable causes"; but sometimes, Bail had to use his personal accounts in an emergency. He was fairly confident that nothing unusual would be found, but it still made the senator very uneasy.

"No, nothing will be found." _Does he even have the authority to search personal accounts? _Bail decided it was safer not to challenge him on that particular point at the moment. It was best to assume he indeed had that kind of authority.

"I am fully aware, Senator," Vader spit out the title like it was a curse, "that you are not a supporter of the Emperor. Your record proves this."

"I am a supporter, I voted to affirm him as Emperor. That is my record, Lord Vader."

"During the last days of the corrupt Republic, you were a member of the so called, 'Delegation of Two-Thousand,' a coalition of traitors who were seeking to undermine the future Emperor's authority."

_So was your wife!_ Bail knew that if he spoke those words to Vader, they would be his last. Not wanting the Sith to pick up on it, he quickly pushed the thought out of his mind. "So were many senators, Lord Vader; but we now understand the necessity of Emperor Palpatine's actions during the Clone War. We did not understand."

The senator felt a sudden pressure in his head as Vader began probing his thoughts. Calling on what he had learned in his years as a politician and the techniques Master Yoda had taught him, Bail attempted to make his mind clear as glass in an attempt to thwart the probe. After a few moments, the pressure lessened as Vader backed off.

"You say the words, Senator, but I do not believe them."

"That is unfortunate."

"Yes, very unfortunate."

Bail knew that he had won this round; Vader had nothing else to go on but conjecture and he did not get anything from the mind probe. "You are dismissed, Senator."

Without anything further, Vader stalked out of the office and left Bail alone. The consulate would be searched and the rest of the staff questioned, but nothing would be found. He wondered if he would be so lucky during the next encounter with Vader.


	18. Chapter 17

_**Chapter 17:**_

Good Alderaanians were peaceful, intellectual, concerned with social justice, and would never put their own good over the good of their people. Good Alderaanians were idealistic true believers in democracy. The man staring out the window of his residence was not a good Alderaanian.

This man had been brought up with these teachings; and at one time in his life believed in them fully, but no longer. He was an apostate--someone who turned away from his people's deeply held convictions. He was a traitor--someone willing to sell out his people for his own personal gain.

He thought about his people's beliefs that he had abandoned. They were the sort of philosophies which made people in the galaxy view Alderaanians as "enlightened". They certainly were noble beliefs, but philosophy was useless when one was truly desperate.

He took a large swig of Corellian whiskey--another one of his bad habits. Drinking and gambling were also things good Alderaanians did not participate in. His mother had warned him about such vices. _"They will only lead you to trouble."_ He wondered what she would say if she was alive now.

_You were right, Mother. Wherever you are, I'm sure you're gloating over it._ He took another sip, enjoying the burning sensation moving slowly down his throat. For a brief moment, he could forget about how much trouble he was in.

It was supposed to be a sure bet, but at the last minute he realized that it was a set-up and he was left owing some very unsavory beings more credits than he had ever seen; certainly more than he could afford on his salary.

Tarkin approached him very soon after he had lost the bet; he had no idea how the governor found out about his problem. He played it cool with the Moff as he negotiated his price, but inside he was completely terrified over the situation. He may not have been a believer in Alderaanian ideals, but he had never openly betrayed any of his people. Desperation had a way of making the morally reprehensible very acceptable in a hurry.

As he looked out onto the Coruscant night, the man wondered at what point did being a traitor become effortless. When did it become that easy to lie to so many people's faces? The man noted, with much amusement, that if things had gone differently he would have probably been a famous celebrity on one of the many holo-dramas; he certainly knew how to act.

He had nothing personal against Bail Organa, he seemed like a decent man; but in a competition between the senator and the man's survival, survival won every time. He was not exactly certain why Tarkin wanted to target Organa; but the governor was willing to shell out enough credits to pay off the man's gambling debts, plus a little extra, in return for damaging information about the senator.

_And I almost had it, until Vader decided to show up!_ He had almost succeeded in slicing the consulate's system, but Vader had alerted Organa to it and destroyed the man's plans. _I'm a dead man if I don't get that information._

_Well Mother, you said there would come a day when I would bite off more than I could chew, and I have. I hope you're happy._ He knew that he could not give up, there was too much at stake--his life. There were other avenues he could take, but they were more dangerous. _I have no choice._

* * *

It had been three long days since Vader's unannounced inspection of the Alderaanian consulate. Judging by the fact that he had not been arrested, tortured, or executed, Bail thought it was safe to assume that nothing incriminating was found. 

The Sith's visit did result in the discovery of several slicing attempts on one of the consulate's database. The senator had been wracking his brain trying to figure out who would have done such a thing. He did not want to believe that it was one of his own staff, but the particular system that was sliced was closed, so remote access would be impossible.

Only those who worked inside the consulate would have had access to the system. The fact that it was an inside job was very troubling. Bail had worked with most of his staff for several years and he believed them all to be loyal. He could not fathom any of them betraying him, and their people, in such a manner.

_What could they be looking for?_ The system that was sliced contained the most sensitive information. There were no documents stored in that database that connected the senator to the rebel Organization, but there was some information stored there which might lead an interested and motivated party to find the evidence of Organa's treason against the Empire. _But they would have to know exactly where to look._

His communicator alerted him to a text message from Mon Mothma, _"The Fine Arts Endowment Committee wants to know how you are planning to vote on their upcoming proposal."_

It was a code, one that he and the senator from Chandrila came up with for the purposes of requesting a meeting outside of the governmental complex. It was only done in an emergency situation. Bail sent back a response, _"I am unsure; further study will be required before I can be firm on which way I will vote."_ That was another code telling Mothma that he will meet her immediately at their designated spot.

As he left the consulate and quickly headed out of the building, Bail wondered what this could be about. Whatever it was, it was serious enough that Mon did not feel comfortable discussing it within the Senate.

Their pre-determined area for these meetings was a small park close to one of the entertainment districts. It was almost always deserted and the Imperial security drones hardly ever flew over the area. It was one of the safest places on the entire planet for discussing Organization activities.

When he arrived, he saw his colleague waiting for him. "Mon, what is this about?"

They began walking around the park, seemingly enjoying the view of the artificially maintained foliage. "I have news. A few of our associates has been speaking to a representative of Soldiers of the Republic."

Bail turned to Mon in surprise, but continued walking. "What were they thinking? The Organization can't be seen to be connected with that group. They are murderers."

"Calm down Bail. From what I was told, what actually happened was not what they were planning. Their representative claims that they were betrayed."

"I don't believe this. What is it that they want?"

Mon sighed, "Apparently, the attack really scared them, seeing as how they issued a threat beforehand. They are terrified of capture, and they know that they cannot survive without help. They would like a meeting."

Bail was incredulous, "Are you actually considering this?"

"I know the one who met with the Soldiers of the Republic's representative; I trust his judgment."

"This is insane, you have to know that. Even if they were betrayed and the attack was not their intent, we still cannot associate with these sorts of groups."

Mon Mothma stopped walking and turned to face her colleague, "Bail, we can't stage a rebellion on our own; it's time we face that fact. If we are going to be anything more than a footnote in history, we have to unite with others with similar views."

_I can't believe what I'm hearing._ "Senator, all these groups have completely different goals. We would spend most of the time fighting amongst ourselves."

"Maybe meeting with their representative could begin something new. We have to try."

Bail was amazed, usually Mon was the voice of realism in the Organization and Bail was the idealistic one. It was very strange for their rolls to be reversed. He looked into her eyes, and he saw that she truly believed this was the best thing. Over the last eight years, he had learned to trust the senator from Chandrila but he could not agree with her completely, there was too much at stake.

He decided to compromise, "I will consider a meeting only if we get more information. We need to know everything they know about the attack. If they didn't officially orchestrate the bombing, I bet they have a good idea who did it."

Mon nodded, "I agree. I will speak to our associate who was contacted by the group's representative. We will need more answers before we proceed."

"Be careful Senator, I don't like this at all."

Mothma looked at Bail with much seriousness. "All the Organization has right now is money; and eventually a military campaign is going to be necessary. From where we are at, we can't get the things necessary for a military conflict. We will need additional support."

Bail hated to be reminded about the upcoming military conflict. He was, at heart, a pacifist, and detested all war. "I know, but we need to proceed slowly. If we are careless, everything we've worked for will be destroyed."

* * *

"Daddy! You're home!" As soon as Adan Nol opened his door, he was met with his son's exuberant cry. Before he had a chance to fully get in the door, Tomas had latched onto his leg. 

Laughing, Adan picked him up. "How's my boy?"

"Great, Firo and Lel came over today." As per custom, Tomas took the officer's cap off of his father's head and put it on his own.

"What did you three troublemakers get into today?" Firo and Lel were the same age as Tomas and were also officers' sons. They had been friends ever since the moment that they met, and claimed that they would be forever. Tomas even said more than once that he wanted to go to the academy with them when he was old enough.

About three months ago, Tomas asked his father how he became an officer; like many boys, he was fascinated by all things military. Adan told him to become an officer he would have to go to the academy; and that had been the only thing that Tomas had talked about ever since.

"We were good." Tomas promised earnestly.

"I'm glad." With a laugh, Adan playfully hugged his son and put him down. "It smells good. What is your mother cooking?"

Tomas frowned, "Don't know, something with vegetables." The boy made no secret of his distain for most vegetables.

With mock seriousness, Adan demonstrated his best military voice. "Don't scowl like that, son. Everything your mother cooks is delicious."

Tomas straightened up and gave a salute, "Yes sir!"

Adan could not help but laugh at seeing a three year old with a military cap so large on him that it covered his eyes, but still trying to salute at attention. "You'll make a good officer someday, my boy."

Adan heard a small gasp from the other side of the room. He took over to its source to find his wife standing there with a very unhappy look on her face. "Rema, I didn't see you."

Without a word, Rema returned to the kitchen. Adan sighed inwardly; the last few days had been very tense between them but things seemed to be getting better, until now.

"Mommy's sad."

Adan looked down at his son in surprise. Usually, when Rema was upset she hid it very well from their son. "Why is she sad?"

Tomas shrugged, "She's been sad all day, she cried after that man came over."

Alarm bells went off in Adan's head. _Man? _"Have you ever seen him before?"

"No, Mommy made me go to my room."

All kinds of scenarios ran through his head, each one getting progressively worse than the one before. "How long was he here?"

Tomas was so young that he did not really have a firm sense of time, so he answered the best way he could. "I watched most of _Trooper 32_ before Mommy told me I could come out."

_Trooper 32_ was one of Tomas' favorite Holo-programs. It was entertainment for children that followed the adventures of a stormtrooper and his squadron as they traveled around the galaxy defeating the enemies of the Empire.

_It was less than twenty minutes, then._ Adan had to find out what was going on. "Son, you need to go back into your room and play for a while. I'll come get you soon."

Tomas frowned, "Why? I want to play with you."

"We will later, just do as I say right now." Nol's tone made it clear that this order was not to be questioned.

Not at all happy about the situation, Tomas reluctantly walked to his room and shut the door.

Bracing himself for a very unpleasant conversation, Adan entered the kitchen to find his wife cooking. "It smells delicious." He did not want to start interrogating her at the offset.

Adan was met with silence from his wife. "What's wrong?"

"It's not important."

"Yes it is."

Rema turned to face her husband, "I'm not supposed to say such things to you anymore, remember?"

Nol's anger was growing exponentially, from Rema's mysterious meetings with other men to her increased coldness, he had enough. "Are you going to accuse me of atrocities again?"

She crossed her arms and glared. "I don't know. Have you done any that I need to be aware of?"

Adan's anger peaked and he shouted, "Why can't you let this go?"

Rema moved closer, "Is that what you want? Do you want a wife that just sits there and doesn't have opinions of her own? I'm sorry Adan, that's not the woman you married!"

I just wish that you could see…"

"See what? I've seen plenty in the last eight years. I've seen a dictatorship arise, I've seen tyranny disguised as the will of the people, and I've seen the democracy that I was taught to love lie tattered and bleeding. That is what I've seen!" Rema stopped her verbal assault and took a deep breath. "I've also seen the man I love more than anything slowly changing. You are not the same man that I married."

He had never heard her speak this openly. Her protests against the Empire before were never this specific. She had never openly called the Empire a dictatorship. Adan was very angry, "You are not the same woman I married; the woman I married was not a traitor."

Rema anger faded into fear of the sudden change that came over her husband. He was not shouting, his voice was cold and emotionless. "Then I guess we have a problem."

"Yes, we have a major problem." He had unconsciously switched to the tone of voice he used when giving orders to stormtroopers or questioning prisoners. Nol was remaining calm on the outside, but inside he was a boiling cauldron of anger and fear. "You are to stop this immediately. I am to never hear one more treasonous word come out of your mouth."

"I'm not one of your soldiers. Don't you dare order me around."

Trying to ignore her tears that were beginning to fall, Adan pointed in Rema's face. "Not one word!" The husband in him wanted to take his wife into his arms and comfort her, but the Imperial officer in him would not allow it.

Rema looked away from Adan, and that was when he knew that she was broken. In the interrogations that he had conducted or observed, he always knew when the prisoner was about to break. The most defiant ones always looked directly into the interrogator's face, despite what was done to them. Then, when a prisoner reached the point that they could no longer take it anymore, they would always look away before telling the interrogator everything he wanted to know.

Adan's blood ran cold as he realized what he had done. He had treated his beloved wife like a prisoner. He wanted to immediately beg her forgiveness; but he knew that, for her sake, she must be made to understand.

There was another subject that they needed to address, while it was the last thing he wanted to do at this moment, Adan knew that it needed to be dealt with. "Rema, Tomas said that a man came over today and you cried after he left. Is there something I should know about?"

Rema's eyes widened in surprise for a brief second, but then she quickly masked it. She turned back to the counter and began dishing food out onto platters. "It was one of my former classmates; he had been visiting Coruscant and found out that I lived here. I cried because he told me that another former classmate, that I was really good friends with while I was in school, died a few years back. We lost touch so I never found out about it; it was a shock, that's all."

As soon as she spoke her explanation, Adan knew that it was a lie. He also knew that he was not going to get the truth out of her after what just happened. _I will do what it takes to find out what is really going on._


	19. Chapter 18

_**Chapter 18:**_

It had been a while since Leia had been this happy. Finally, she was spending time with her father after so long. Since the planetary lockdown had kept the princess at the capital longer than planned, she had hardly seen him in days. Leia knew his job was very important, but still, the young girl missed him very much when he was at the Senate.

The princess had spent most of her time with the tutor that her father hired for her. He told her that since he did not know when they were going to be able to return to Alderaan, that she could not neglect her studies any longer. Leia loved learning, and excelled in all of her subjects, but she was not overly fond of her tutor. She missed her regular tutor.

Her homesickness was increasing every day. What began as a great adventure had turned into something completely different. Leia was stuck on an unfamiliar world for the foreseeable future and it was beginning to get to her.

She had spoken to her mother many times over HoloNet, but it was not the same. The little girl wanted to be with her mother, and tell her about all that had happened. Leia wanted her mother to hold her and tell her that she was safe and that everything would be all right.

While Leia was putting on a brave face for her father and his staff, in reality she was very frightened. Despite what her father promised, the nightmares that had begun not long after her questioning by Vader were not getting any better.

Her father tried very hard to comfort her after her nightmares, but there was little that he could do. Leia knew that he would take them away if he could. However, he could not, and Leia had not told her father about them the last few nights. She knew that it was upsetting to him, so she decided that she would have to be brave and face them alone.

While most of her time on Coruscant had been spent alone or with a tutor, there were a few days like today when Leia could be with her father and would not have to share him with anyone at the Senate.

He had surprised her early that morning by announcing that he was taking the entire day off, a rarity for Bail Organa, and that they were going to spend it together. She was so happy that, for a moment, she forgot about the dreams that had plagued her sleep the night before.

Leia could not remember having so much fun while exploring Coruscant with her father. While she had been given a tour of some of the main tourist areas upon arriving, having Threepio as a tour-guide was not what she had in mind. This was what she was hoping to do while on the Capital, investigate a strange and exciting planet with her father at her side. Finally, she was getting to do that.

After lunch, they stopped at a shopping pavilion in the Corellian district. Leia actually wanted go to the small Naboo district to buy a gift for Sabé, but Bail told her that they could not go. She found it strange that he did not give a reason why he did not want her to go; Leia did not understand. She was disappointed, but she still had a lot of fun exploring the Corellian district and sampling unfamiliar food.

One thing Leia did notice that seemed strange was the amount of stormtroopers on the streets. They were everywhere and even outnumbered civilians in some areas. This many soldiers was a very unfamiliar sight to the princess. On Alderaan, the police presence was much less noticeable.

During the day, Leia had seen more than a few arrests. When she asked her father why this was happening, Bail frowned and said that the increase in security was because of the attack; but he would not say any more, and would not explain why he seemed upset about it.

While shopping, Leia watched some of the people. Everyone seemed tense, uneasy, and prone to frustration. When stormtroopers would appear, the princess could see fear and hints of resentment on their faces. They had the same look on their faces as her father did when she asked about the arrests. She wondered what all of this could mean.

While Leia and her father were browsing the wares at one of the clothing vendors, she noticed one of the people on the streets acting strange. She could not pinpoint exactly why he seemed strange, but she could feel something wrong with him. It was a very odd sensation, one that she could not explain.

"Are you getting bored already?"

Leia was surprised by her father's voice and she immediately looked over to where he was standing. "I'm sorry, I was just thinking."

Bail's smile faded into a look of concern, "Is something wrong?"

"No." Leia did not like lying to her father, but she knew he would not understand.

"We'll look around at a few more shops to find your mother a present, and then we'll go somewhere else."

Leia smiled, "All right Father."

As the two left the shop, Leia took a quick look behind her at the man that seemed so strange. She could not get him out her mind. _There is something that I should know about him. What is it?_

* * *

Typho was so tired; it had been days since he had slept at all, and that sleep had been far from restful. _I have not slept well since Adira was murdered, why should now be any different?_

Things had not turned out the way that he planned. Yes, the bomb went off flawlessly and he was being hunted by Vader--all according to his plan; but he did not expect to be feeling certain things.

Guilt at what he had done was eating away at him. Every time he saw a HoloNet news report and saw families of the dead weeping for their loved ones, Typho could not help but feel the sting of remorse.

When he was planning the operation, he was well aware of the death toll that he was going to cause, but he consoled himself with the fact that those Empire Day revelers wholeheartedly supported the tyrannical government that had killed his wife. They cheered the murdering dictator and, in Typho's mind, were guilty as well.

It was not only the killing of so many civilians that affected him so much, it was the betrayal of Soldiers of the Republic. He had lied to them, and his actions had made them targets of the Empire's wrath. He would not have even involved the group if he did not need their resources to implement such an attack. He knew that they would curse his name as long as they live.

During the planning and in the initial rush of his success, he never thought that he would feel this way about it. Even though Typho tried to remind himself that it was all to get a shot at killing Vader, and that the deaths would be worth it in the end, he was still plagued with guilt.

Typho had not been idle since the attack. He had spent the days gathering information from an unlikely ally here on Coruscant. He did not want to involve others in this, but need had driven him to it. The informant was able to provide information about the Imperial military's classified frequencies. With access to these frequencies, Typho would be able to know when the Empire was coming for him, and be prepared.

He knew that he did not have long before he would be caught, then would get a chance to implement his plan. He was sure that the EMP device would work as expected. It had to work; if it did not, all of this would have been for nothing.

He had been walking in the shopping area of the Corellian district for the past hour. Typho was sick of the filth of Coruscant's seedy underbelly and needed some air. As he was walking, he could not help but notice the many children that were around. _My child would have been two years old, and Adira and I might have even had another child by now. She wanted a large family._ Anguish overwhelmed him for a moment before Typho got control. _I can't do this now. _

As he was wandering the street, one particular child caught his eye. She obviously was from a wealthy family, but it was not that which made him notice her. She was watching him and giving him a strange look, a look that he remembered seeing Senator Amidala give when she was trying to figure out something. It was not just the look that made him think of the senator, it was the girl's eyes. They were the exact color and shape of the beloved former queen's. _I must stop imagining things._

There was nothing left for Typho to do but wait--wait to be captured, wait to implement his plan, and wait to die. _Adira, I will be with you once your murderer is dead. Then, we will both rest together. _

* * *

Darth Vader did not tolerate incompetence, in himself or in those he commanded. Making examples of officers who did not meet his high expectations had become his signature and the main reason why he was so feared. Vader did not kill those men out of a lust for death; he only used their deaths to inspire others around them to do their best. He never hated the officers that he killed; he never thought about them at all after they dropped dead on the floor. 

In the days following the attack, Vader had executed five officers, including the captain of his flagship. They were inefficient, inept, and completely overwhelmed by the task of securing the capital and finding the one responsible for the attack.

There were a few good leads pointing to the whereabouts of the bombers. The main suspects were, of course, Soldiers of the Republic, the dissident group that announced a threat a few days before Empire day. Vader had been going over every scrap of information about the group and discovered that it was mainly composed of students of the Republic military academy who defected after the rise of the Empire.

While Soldiers of the Republic were the main suspects, Vader still entertained other possibilities. From the intelligence reports, he discovered that the group was full of passion, but not much else. They lacked the expertise to pull off such an attack. Either it was some other group, or Soldiers of the Republic had outside help.

Vader had been in his office in Station One, studying intelligence reports, when Major Nol requested entrance. While too many of the officers stationed on Imperial Center were too inept for Vader's liking, the major was proving to be a cut above the rest. He was intelligent, efficient, and did not think as conventionally as most officers. Many of the few leads that they had discovered had been because of him.

It was because of this that Vader was planning on having Major Nol permanently transferred to his flagship after the situation on Imperial Center was dealt with. "Major, what do you have to report?"

Nol stopped to give a quick military bow, "My Lord, we've been monitoring certain sectors, as you asked. We've discovered, in the Corellian district, someone that exactly fits the description of the man who was reportedly praising Soldiers of the Republic for the bombing. While there are many men who fit that description, I felt that you should be made aware."

"Very good Major, let me see the surveillance footage."

The major punched a few buttons on the office's holo viewer, and within seconds, footage from the live feed appeared. After a few more manipulations of the controls, the view shifted to a close up of the man in question. It did not take Vader long to recognize him. _Typho!_

The Sith had not seen the man that was once the head of his wife's security for many years--not since her death. He was one of the few who knew about Padmé's secret marriage. Vader could not believe that this man was the one praising the bombing. He was about to turn off the feed and declare it a false lead, but something caught the Sith's attention.

The tight zoom allowed Vader to look at the man's face, and the look Typho had in his eyes told many things. The Sith recognized the look of anguish he had; it was exactly the look the newly named Darth Vader had on his face after the killing of the younglings--before he truly gave himself to the dark side after Kenobi's betrayal.

The man he was watching was being eaten up by guilt. Vader reached into the Force for confirmation of his suspicions, and it did not take long to get his answer; they had their man. "Major, prepare a strike team and close off all possible exits from that area. We will tear the sector apart if we have to, I want him taken alive."

A nervous look crossed Nol's face, "Lord Vader, there are possibly thousands of civilians in that area. Should I advise the team to be cautious?"

"Civilians do not concern me, Major. He is to be taken alive at all costs."

Nol nodded, but it was obvious that he did not agree with the Dark Lord's methods but was wisely remaining silent. "Yes, My Lord. Should I lead the team?"

Vader decided that he would have to deal with the major's reluctance at another time. "No, I will lead the team."

* * *

The sound of hovering military vehicles was Typho's first clue that he was caught. The military frequencies that he had been monitoring were strangely quiet, a sure sign that the Empire was on to him. Almost as soon as he looked up, the troop carriers dropped from the sky and dozens of stormtroopers poured onto the streets. 

People were running every in every direction in almost a panic, eager to not get caught up in whatever these troops were involved in. Typho knew that this was his moment; he would finally get a chance to destroy the monster in the black mask. _It's finally happening, Adira, I will give you vengeance. He will pay for what he did to you._

Typho was regretful that the EMP device that he had procured to kill Vader was so quick. According to his calculations, the machines that keep him breathing and his organs functioning correctly would fail all fail within three seconds of the device being activated. Darth Vader himself would be dead within thirty seconds.

That was too quick, in Typho's opinion; he had hoped to use something that would leave him in agony for hours, but nothing suitable could be found. _It will have to do._ All he had to do was get within two meters to activate the device for maximum effect and then he would finally have the vengeance that he had been seeking for years--the vengeance that he killed and betrayed to acquire.

Chaos was breaking loose all around him, Typho calmly walked through the streets as he waited for the inevitable. He found himself back in the shopping area; and he looked across the street to find the same girl he saw earlier, the one with Senator Amidala's eyes. Even with all that was going on around her, and with her father urging her to leave the area with him, she still stared at him with the most peculiar expression.

They were getting closer; he could hear the rhythm of a few hundred boots coming toward him. Then, he heard the sound that he wanted to hear the most, the sound of Vader's breathing. Typho smiled, his victory was near, and it was all going the way he planned. He would even get a chance to destroy the monster in public, with thousands watching. The Force that the long-dead Jedi worshiped must have been looking out for him.

He felt the gloved hands of stormtroopers, each grabbing an arm; they were taking him directly to Vader. Typho was prepared; he had taken the EMP device out and was palming it to keep it hidden until the time was right. It was ready to go as soon as he was close enough. As he was being dragged toward the waiting Vader, Typho wanted to laugh. _He has no idea what is coming. _

Finally, he was close enough to set the device off, but Typho wanted to savor the moment of his victory. Vader regarded the man before him for a moment before speaking. "By the order of the Emperor, you are under arrest for the bombing in sector J7-154."

Typho could hear the gasps of the crowd. Their surprise quickly turned into exclamations of glee; he tried to ignore them. _They don't understand why I had to do it. If they only knew, they would see me in a different light._

Vader ordered the stormtroopers to take him away. Typho knew that he had to act quickly. "This is for Adira! Die you murderer!" Before anyone could react, he pressed the button to activate the device. It was relatively silent; there was no sound of a blast or shockwave, just a high pitched electronic tone.

The first thing that Typho noticed was that the stormtroopers that were holding him had loosened their grip and were clutching their heads as if they were in pain. As he quickly looked around, he saw all of the stormtroopers in that area doing it. Then, he turned his gaze toward Vader; he looked incapacitated as well. _I did it! I killed the beast!_

Then, something happened that Typho did not expect, the absolutely unthinkable; Darth Vader started getting up. _No! It can't be; it had to work!_ Not knowing what to do, the formerly respected head of Senator Amidala's security, turned mass murderer, started running. He knew that some would interpret his fleeing as a cowardly act; but in his moment of utter failure, Typho did the only thing that he could.

_It can't be all for nothing. Those that I killed could not have died in vain. I can't be just a murdering traitor; it has to be for a reason. _He did not know what to do, but he knew that he could not let the Empire take him just yet. _I have to try again. I'm not a murderer; they did not die in vain!_

Typho could hear the shouts of the people and the sound of Vader ordering the recovered stormtroopers to give chase. Before him, he saw an open area, one that would be easy for the soldiers to get a clear shot. _I need leverage; I can't let them kill me now. I must have time to try again._ Looking around for anything that would give him the opportunity, Typho found it. Just waiting for him, it seemed, was the little girl that was watching him earlier.

Quickly making the decision, Typho ran up to the girl and grabbed her before her father had time to react. As he ran, the girl struggled in his arms but he held onto her tightly. As he had hoped, the stormtroopers did not fire at him when he reached the open area. He heard the yelling of the crowd and the screams of the girl's father. _I won't hurt her; I just need to get away from here._

* * *

Sabé could not wait to see her husband again. She had hardly seen him in days; his schedule had been filled ever since the attack. His work as ambassador from Alderaan necessitated many long hours at the consulate working to ease some of the restrictions that had been placed upon their planet. 

All planets in the Empire were affected by Darth Vader's new security regulations. Jorran had speculated that the restrictions that had been placed on the planets of the Empire were going to be permanent. Sabé agreed with him, and asked if there was anything that could be done. Her husband just looked at her sadly and admitted there was little anyone could do.

Sabé supposed that she should have been surprised and outraged by the extreme security measures that had been implemented that, in effect, destroyed any remaining freedoms that had not been taken away after the rise of the Empire. However, she was not. The Emperor and Vader were tyrants and that sort of behavior is to be expected. The only ones that it seemed to surprise were those who thought that the Emperor once truly believed in democracy--_the fools._

"Mother, you need to watch HoloNet, something's happened."

The voice of Sabé's nine-year-old son interrupted her thoughts. "Cadin, you were supposed to be working on your lessons, not watching HoloNet."

"But Mother, it's really big."

Seeing the look in her son's eyes convinced the former handmaiden. She entered the informal family room to find her other two children's eyes transfixed upon whatever was going on. What Sabé found when she began watching was something out of her nightmares. Showing on the HoloNet viewer was an image of the Empire's number one suspect in the bombings--Captain Typho, the former chief of Senator Amidala's security.

_It can't be, it has to be a mistake. It has to be a lie! He could never do such a thing._ Then, another blow hit Sabé as the news announcer described the attempted arrest and the subsequent kidnapping of the High Princess of Alderaan. _Leia! Typho, do you have any idea what you've done?_


	20. Chapter 19

_**Chapter 19:**_

Vader was angry--angry at his men for letting Typho get away and angry himself for his weakness. He speculated that the device that was used against him was an EMP pulse generator designed to destroy electronics within a certain area. _He was trying to kill me._

What Typho did not know was that the designers of the suit that encased him had thought about such things; It was designed to resist such attacks. The pulse did cause several of the devices throughout his body to momentarily shut down, but after a few seconds everything reset itself automatically. The devices within the stormtroopers' armor and helmets shorted out momentarily as well. That pause allowed Typho to get away.

Vader again cursed his former master for destroying his body, forcing him into the hated suit that was designed to weaken him and keep the Sith under the control of his new master.

There was chaos everywhere. Beings were screaming in terror, some were trying to run away, others were trying to get closer to see what was going on. In the distance, Vader could see a group of reporters from HoloNet news trying to get into the area. He knew he had to get control of the situation immediately before things spiraled even more out of control.

"Strengthen the perimeter," Vader ordered to one group of stormtroopers. "No one gets in or out." He then addressed one of the commanders, "Contact Major Nol, inform him of the situation. Relay my orders to begin an official manhunt and to release Typho's image to the press and to tell them that he is the main suspect in the bombing." Vader knew how angry the people were and he knew that if it was known that Typho was the man responsible for the bombing, the public would be more likely to turn him in.

Vader turned to see Bail Organa running toward him. He could feel this man's panic; he was not even trying to hide it. "Lord Vader, he took my daughter."

"I am aware of that, Senator." The princess' kidnapping had caused this situation to become even more complicated. What was once a simple fugitive search had become a hostage situation. The fact that the girl that was taken was the High Princess of Alderaan made it much worse.

"What is going to happen?"

Vader could see the fear in the man's eyes. There was something else as well, anger. The Sith could feel the man's rage increasing by the second. Alderaanians were supposed to be peace-loving and not prone to such dark emotions. Vader found it interesting, but not very surprising, to see the senator's very well crafted façade melting away. "We will find the man."

"Don't you dare allow her to get hurt!" Organa's anger seemed to have overridden his survival instincts; no one addressed Lord Vader in such a manner.

The Sith's first reaction was to choke the life out of the man who dared to order him around, but he stayed his hand. Killing a senator was a very tricky thing to do, politically. Vader might have despised all things political but that did not mean he was unaware of that world. "You may want to rethink how you speak to me, Senator."

Bail Organa refused to back down, and for that he earned some of Vader's respect. "Do not forget who she is, Vader. I imagine the Emperor would not be happy at the political fallout resulting from anything happening to the High Princess of Alderaan."

Underneath the mask, Vader smiled briefly. His amusement did not come from what Organa said, but it was from what he was feeling. The emotions that were coming from the senator were nothing like he had ever felt from him before. There was anger, there was rage, and there was pure hate. _Finally, I meet the real Bail Organa._

Vader turned to one of the soldiers in the area, "Escort the senator to Station One, have Major Nol question him."

* * *

Sama was tired of hearing bad news; it never seemed to stop coming. First, Typho had betrayed them and forced them to go on the run and now he had even gone so far as to kidnap the daughter of a prominent senator. It was a nightmare that would not end. 

Matt had been gone for so long without anyone hearing from him. She expected this, but it was very hard not knowing if he was all right. She knew that others in their group were beginning to question Matt's loyalties, but Sama assured them that he was completely loyal to them.

_We thought Typho was loyal._ Sama did not want to believe that her dearest friend, and newfound lover, was a traitor, but she could not afford to completely discount that possibility.

He told her that he would probably be gone for weeks. Necessity had forced Soldiers of the Republic to seek an alliance with other groups that opposed the Empire. Matt had heard through various channels that there was a group inside the Imperial Senate itself that was seeking to bring about a return of the Republic.

Sama had been suspicious but Matt had convinced her to let him try to contact them. Despite her misgivings, she knew that he was right. They could not hope to bring down the Empire alone; they had neither the manpower nor the credits.

Matt had some promising contacts within his homeworld's government that could lead them to this elusive group. He hoped to be able to set up a meeting with them. Sama was not as confident as he was about all of this. She suspected that no one would even want to get near them because of what Typho had done. _Especially now that he's taken to kidnapping children._

Sama's communicator beeped and she looked down to see who the message was from. The display only showed a series of Huttese characters followed by a long string of numbers. She smiled broadly; Sama knew immediately who it was from--_Matt!_

Soldiers of the Republic had developed a specific protocol when sending messages remotely. The message would never identify the sender directly; the actual sender's identification was encrypted making it seem like the message was only one of the many junk advertisements that were sent across the galaxy every second.

Quickly, Sama sent the message through the decryption program that had been developed by the group. As expected, it was short and to the point: _"Mission successful...contact made...meeting will be scheduled...there is hope...I love you."_

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Sama could not help but smile at the expression he tacked on to the end of the message. However, the surge of warm feelings passed quickly leaving her with the same fears she had before. _What if this is a mistake? What if they betray us?_

Knowing that they were already committed to this course of action and there was nothing she could do to change it, Sama turned to leave the room. She had to tell the others the news.

* * *

Major Nol had never met Senator Bail Organa personally. He had seen him many times on HoloNet news and from a distance at many events on Imperial Center, but he never spoke to him. The times that Adan had seen him, Senator Organa was poised and in control. 

Adan barely recognized the man he saw being escorted into Station One. Yes, he had the physical features of the senator, but gone was perfect politician; the man he saw now was confused, angry, desperate, and lost.

The major certainly understood, his daughter had been kidnapped by the man who most likely had something to do with the wholesale murder of over one-hundred-thousand beings. "Senator Organa, I have a few questions for you. I will make this as brief as possible."

Organa only nodded; Adan speculated that the man did not yet trust his ability to speak. Knowing that they were not necessary, he ordered the accompanying stormtroopers to return to their post. He then motioned to the senator to follow him, "If you will, come with me."

Major Nol led him to a small conference room. His office was still being used by Lord Vader while he was on the planet, and even though the second-in-command was currently elsewhere, there was still a good chance that he would return to Station One today. "Sit down Senator; this will just be a moment. I'm very sorry about your daughter."

The senator looked up suddenly, seemingly surprised by such sentiment coming from an Imperial officer. "Thank you."

"Why were you and your daughter at that location?" Adan hated asking these questions but it was procedure that he had to follow.

"We were shopping; we had spent the entire day together. I promised Leia that she would have me all day; I have been working so much."

The tone of voice that the senator was using was almost eerie. His eyes were staring directly ahead, not focused on the one addressing him. Adan knew that he was witnessing a man on the edge of panicked desperation. He tried to imagine what he would be going through if it was Tomas who was taken. "According to the report, you mentioned to Lord Vader that you knew this man. How did you know him?"

"He was chief of security for a former senator. I didn't really know him personally, but I had seen him many times."

Major Nol knew the one that Organa was referring to. Senator Amidala had been a very well known member of the Republic Senate. She was mainly known for her opposition to the, then, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. Despite an official report that stated her death was from natural causes, some believed that the timing of her death was too convenient to the Emperor to be natural.

"When was the last time you saw him?"

"Eight years ago, before the senator died."

Nol noted that Organa would not say Senator Amidala's name out-loud. "Is there any reason why he would grab your daughter?"

"I assume he was looking for a hostage. I have not seen or spoken with him in years, I promise you."

Adan believed him, but Imperial protocol forbade him from telling him that. He had to continue with the questioning. "It seems your family has been connected to several incidents on Imperial Center in the past few weeks. First, your daughter is picked up after trespassing in a restricted area, and then the two of you barely miss the explosion that knocked out an entire city platform."

"What are you implying, Major?"

"I'm only pointing out that trouble seems to follow you and your family."

The senator ignored Adan's statement. "What is going to happen?"

"A planet-wide manhunt has begun. We will spare no expense to find him; it is the Empire's number one priority right now."

"I know the Imperial military's standing orders regarding hostage situations--that the hostage taker is not to be negotiated with. Please, I beg you, don't let my little girl be caught in the crossfire."

Adan was sympathetic to Organa's concerns, but he was also very much aware of Imperial regulations. The senator was right, the Empire did not negotiate with terrorists, especially with Lord Vader personally leading the manhunt. In theory the regulation seemed correct, but that was a hard thing to explain to a grieving father. "We will do what we can, this is a very unfortunate situation. However, Imperial protocol is what it is."

The senator's gaze became intense, "Can I ask you a question Major? Do you have any children?"

"Yes, I have a son ."

"Would you do anything to protect your son? Would you give up everything just to keep your family safe? Would you say 'damn the regulations' to keep them from harm?"

Adan did not know how to safely answer that question; it was something that he had been struggling with ever since Rema's disloyalty came to light. _Could I say "damn the Empire" to keep her safe?_ The answer stumbled from his mouth before he could stop it, "Yes." _There it is, then._

The senator nodded, "You're a good man." Adan noted that Organa seemed almost surprised when he said that. "You do understand."

Major Nol, suddenly growing very uncomfortable with the way the conversation was turning out, stood up. "Senator, we will do everything we can to keep your daughter safe; I promise you that."

Despite the circumstances, Bail Organa smiled slightly, "I believe you Major; I really do."

* * *

Rema Nol had been organizing the pantry for the last hour. It was just another in a long line of unnecessary tasks that she had been focused on for the past few days. She discovered when she had her mind on busywork she would not be as focused on what she had done. 

Despite her attempts to justify her actions to herself, Rema still could not shake the feelings of guilt that tormented her. She tried to tell herself that the information she gave to her dead cousin's husband was not that vital and would not harm Adan; but the nagging sense that she had made a tremendous error in judgment would not go away.

When she was a child, Rema was very close to Adira. They were not only family, but they were also best friends. The two of them were inseparable until Rema's father decided to move her immediate family away from their homeworld of Quellor to seek new opportunities. Rema remembered being heartbroken and cried for days after the move. Even though they kept up long-distance correspondence via HoloNet, it was not the same and gradually they two of them grew apart.

Even so, the news of Adira's death two years prior devastated Rema very much. She never did believe the Empire's claim that she pulled a blaster on a group of stormtroopers; Rema could never see her very non-violent cousin even touching a blaster.

Still, the official circumstances of the death prompted Adan to not allow her to go to Adira's funeral. He claimed that an officer's wife being seen at the memorial of someone the Empire declared a traitor would raise too many eyebrows. Rema remembered the fight that resulted from her husband's decree and afterward she did not speak to him for over a week. With time, the storm passed in their marriage and Rema decided to try to move on, but she never completely forgave him.

It was Adira's death that coincided with her increased hatred of most things having to do with the Empire. Rema knew that the official report was a lie, but she never did understand why Imperial troops would kill her cousin. Adira was not a revolutionary.

When her cousin's husband contacted her a few months ago, she was very surprised. Despite the pleadings of her grandparents and other family members to stay on Quellor, he left the planet very soon after Adira's death and had not been heard from since.

Before then, Rema had only met Adira's husband once and that was at her cousin's wedding. She did not know much about the man, but she did know that Adira was very much in love.

At the beginning of their correspondence, he only asked how her family was faring. Over time, however, the nature of their conversations began to change and he started mentioning the Empire more and more. Over their long-distance messages, he made it clear that he was not a supporter of the Empire. He told Rema of the many atrocities that he had seen performed in the name of the Emperor.

She knew that he was still mourning Adira and, at first, dismissed his words as just his grief speaking. However, the things he said began to make her think about the things that she had heard herself from officers throughout the years.

Rema never told her husband of the correspondence she had with her cousin's husband because she knew that he would think the worst. She was faithful to her husband and would never think about any other man in a romantic sense, but she was afraid that Adan would still disapprove.

_Oh, he would certainly disapprove of what I've done now._ Rema could not get the idea that she had betrayed her husband by what she had done out of her mind. It was not only the correspondence, but it was worse than that.

Two days prior, Adira's husband showed up unexpectedly at her door:

* * *

_"What are you doing here? You know my husband doesn't know about you."_

_Rema saw immediately that he was nervous and unsettled. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to include you in this; but I have no choice."_

_"What are you talking about?"_

_He began to pace, "Rema, does your husband keep any of his datapads at home?"_

_She was very surprised by the unusual question. "Yes, just a few."_

_He gave a relieved smile, "Can I look at one of them? It'll just be for a moment."_

_"No, what is this all about?"_

_He crossed the room to look her directly in the eyes. "I'm going to avenge Adira's murder and I need your help to do it."_

_"What are you planning?" Rema demanded._

_He shook his head, "I can't tell you that."_

_"This is unbelievable! You come into my home, ask for something and refuse to tell me why."_

_His agitation increased and he roughly grabbed her shoulders. "If you ever cared about your cousin, then you will help me."_

_Rema's tears began to flow, "How dare you!"_

_"All I need is to look at one datapad for just a moment. Then you will never see me again and you will help avenge your cousin's murder."_

_"I don't see why looking at datapads full of old information will help you. Everything changed since the attack."_

_"Then it won't matter that I look at it, now will it?"_

_"My husband would never approve of this."_

_He cursed under his breath, "Of course he wouldn't approve. He's a soldier of the Empire; he's among those that betrayed the galaxy. He's a monster like all the others." _

_Rema could not respond; part of herself was angry at him for saying such things about Adan and another part was trying to convince herself that Adira's husband was not right. _

_He softened his tone greatly but did not release her shoulders. "Where does he keep them Rema? You don't even have to speak, just point the way. I'll get what I need and leave; you'll never see or hear from me again."_

_"I can't." Even though her words were defiant, Rema could feel her resolve weakening. _

_He sighed, "I'm not leaving without them. I will search this apartment myself if I have to; but I don't want to do that."_

_"I'll call the authorities if you do."_

_He smiled, "I don't think you will. I think you want to help me. I promise you that your husband will not be harmed; this has nothing to do with him. Think about Adira, think about your family, and think about the galaxy. You will help all of them if you just let me look at one datapad for just a moment. I only need one piece of information."_

_Rema knew that she was beaten. Despite all the warnings inside her head telling her that this was very wrong, she ignored them. She wanted this man out of her apartment and her life, and this was the only way to do it. With a shaky hand, Rema pointed toward Adan's small study directly off of the main living area. _

_He gently kissed Rema on the forehead. He then quickly disappeared into the study. As he promised, he was finished in only a few moments. As he left, he looked over at Rema, who was sitting on the couch crying. "Thank you, you just saved the galaxy today."_

* * *

In the days after that last encounter, Rema never could fully convince herself that what she did was right. In fact, she had the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that she had put her husband in more danger. 

Rema was relieved to not hear of anything Adira's husband did. She had the feeling that he was planning something big, and would hear about it when it happened. _Maybe he was unsuccessful._

"Mommy!" Tomas' call interrupted her thoughts. He had been playing in the other room and she was about to put him down for his nap.

Leaving the kitchen she went to her son's bedroom and found him watching something on the Holo. "Tomas, you know you're not supposed to watch HoloNet unless I give you permission."

Ignoring his mother's scolding, Tomas pointed to what looked like a breaking news report. "I wanted to watch _Trooper 32_, but some other show is on."

Rema was shocked when the image of Adira's husband appeared in front of her. _"Imperial authorities are on the look-out for this human. Lord Vader himself has declared a planet-wide manhunt. He has been officially declared the prime suspect for the massive Empire Day bombing that killed over one-hundred-thousand beings. If anyone has seen him, you are ordered to report it to Imperial authorities immediately."_

Rema suddenly heard a scream and then realized that it was coming from her. _He's the bomber!_ The immediate fear and guilt that shot through her made Rema barely conscious of what was going on around her. She thought that she could hear what sounded like Tomas crying, but it seemed so far removed.

She felt nauseous and dizzy and remaining standing was becoming a bigger challenge by the second.Darkness filled her vision. Her last thought before passing out was, _By the Maker, what have I done?_


	21. Chapter 20

_**Chapter 20:**_

Nol had been monitoring the hunt for Typho from the main control center for several hours when one of the junior officers came up to him, "Major, there's a communication coming in for you. It's from your wife."

Adan was immediately concerned; Rema hardly ever contacted him at work and only when something was wrong. He turned to his executive officer, "Take over Lieutenant, route it to my office."

As soon as he left the control center, he took off running. Fortunately, Lord Vader was on his flagship and no where around. Nol was glad; he did not want to have to explain to the second in command of the Empire why he was taking personal communications during a major crisis.

When he made his way to the office, he checked the communication unit and discovered that the message was audio only. He found that odd because his wife usually used their HoloNet unit for communication. "Rema, what's going on? Is there something wrong?"

There was no response; Adan checked the connection again making sure that it was not cut off. "Rema, do you hear me?"

"Adan, I need you here." As soon as he heard her voice he knew something was very wrong. Her voice was very quiet and unsure; it sounded like it was that of a child.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

He heard a sob coming from her, "Please come here; I need you. Something terrible has happened."

"Are you hurt?" Nol was afraid; he had never heard his wife so distressed.

More crying could be heard from her end of the communication. "No, I'm not hurt; just come here."

He did not know what was going on, but whatever it was, it was really upsetting Rema. It sounded like she was in pain, "I'm coming, but I'm contacting emergency services first."

"No!" She screamed. "You can't send authorities."

Now, Adan was even more afraid. He was about to call them anyway, but decided against it. He suddenly felt chills go down his spine; Rema did not want the Empire to know about whatever had happened. "All right, I'll be there as soon as I can."

Adan had never made it home so quickly. He pushed his Imperial issued personal speeder past the limit and arrived within fifteen minutes; the trip usually took close to a half hour. When he arrived, he was greeted by his teary eyed son. "Are you all right? Where's your mother?"

Tomas did not speak, he only pointed as he continued to sob. When his father picked him up, he latched onto him and refused to let go.

Still carrying the boy, Adan made his way to his and Rema's bedroom; he found her lying on the bed, weeping.

Putting Tomas down, he rushed to her side, "What's wrong?"

Rema sat up quickly and began weeping even more when she met her husband's gaze. "Please tell me that you love me. You promised me that you would love me no matter what; you said that during your vows. Please tell me you meant them."

Tomas began to cry even harder. Seeing his mother in that state was very upsetting to the small child. Adan did not know what to do. He was usually the person who took charge of situations and knew exactly how to fix things, but now he was lost. He decided to deal with his son first. He took the upset child into his arms, "Rema, I'm going to put Tomas to bed. I'm coming right back."

Rema did not answer as Adan took Tomas to his room across the hall. He did not know what to say to the child so he just held him and rocked him gently. As he tried to calm his son, Adan thought about what his wife said just minutes before. He was disturbed by the panic in her voice. _Why does she think I would stop loving her? What did she do?_

Many possibilities crossed his mind, each one worse than the one before. He wanted to know what she might have done but he greatly feared that knowledge. Adan looked down at the child that he held in his arms. He could not shake the feeling that whatever it was would change their family forever.

"Daddy," Tomas' tear stained face looked up at his father. "What's wrong with Mommy?"

He did not know how to answer because he did not know either. "I'm going to go see. Can you be a good boy and take your nap a little early?"

Tomas sniffed and nodded, "Please make Mommy better."

Adan felt his heart constrict painfully as he put his son to bed. "I will try." He hoped that Tomas would go to sleep quickly. The boy looked very tired and emotionally drained from watching his mother go through her ordeal.

With one duty accomplished, Adan wearily returned to his bedroom and found Rema sitting upright on the bed. She was not crying at the moment, but she looked away from him as he entered the room.

He sat down next to Rema and put his arm around her. Adan could not help but notice that she stiffened somewhat when he touched her. "Now, tell me what this is about."

Rema waited for a moment and then looked directly at her husband. When she did, a few more tears fell down her face. She looked away again as she struggled with her composure. "Promise me that you'll take care of Tomas, no matter what happens."

"My love, why are you speaking like this?"

A sob escaped her, "Just promise me!"

Adan got closer to his wife and took her completely in his arms. "Why would you have to ask that question? I will love you until I die, no matter what, and I'll always care for our son."

"Just remember, I love you so much and I would never intentionally hurt you."

"I know you wouldn't; now, tell me what happened." Adan could not remember ever being so afraid.

Rema took a deep breath to steady herself. "First, I want to know who I am talking to. Am I talking to the Imperial major or am I talking to my husband?"

At the mention of the Empire, Adan froze. He had a sinking feeling that his worst nightmare was about to come true. His voice hardened, "I am both."

She broke from his grasp and stood up. For a moment, she did not speak a word, but much was conveyed in the silence between them. Finally, she spoke, "If that's the case, then…" Rema turned around and looked her husband directly in the eye. "Major Nol, I have a confession to make."

Adan stood, and crossed the room to his wife. This time, there was no embrace and no gestures of support. Their difference in height seemed more pronounced as he towered over her. His expression was hard when he looked down at the woman that he pledged to love no matter what. "What did you do?"

Rema did not look away from him. He could not help but be reminded of his many interrogations that he performed or witnessed and how the subjects were often defiant at the beginning. "I have betrayed the Empire."

He felt like someone had kicked him in the chest. Adan found it hard to take a breath as he felt his and his family's life crumble. Finally, words were again possible, "How did you betray the Empire?"

Not being able to stand his gaze anymore, Rema turned her head away from him only to have Adan grab her by the chin and turn her back to him; he did not let go.

"Answer me!" He yelled very loudly when she did not respond, something that Adan had never done before with his wife. He could see that she was terrified of him.

"I know Typho, the man that's being sought. He was married to my cousin, Adira, and I've been corresponding with him for the past few months."

"Your cousin, the one who was executed as a traitor if I recall correctly, was married to the one who is the Empire's number one suspect in the attack." It was a nightmare, pure and simple. Adan was angry, angrier than he had ever been. "You certainly have an interesting little family, don't you my dear?"

She tried to back away, but her husband's hard grip would not allow it. "I had no idea what he'd done! He often spoke about the Empire, but I just thought it was the grief talking when he mentioned how it needed to be destroyed. I never paid it much attention."

Adan felt sick again; he was angry and felt betrayed in the worst way. "But you did pay attention to it, didn't you Rema? You've been listening to that murderer and that's where those new ideas of yours came from, wasn't it?"

Rema shook her head emphatically, "No, I didn't, please believe me!"

He let go of her chin and grabbed her shoulders hard, "How am I supposed to believe anything you tell me?" In the back of his mind, Adan knew he should not have been yelling like this but his anger would not allow him to listen to his internal voice of reason. "You have been having secret correspondence with a blood-thirsty terrorist. What else have you been doing with him?" He demanded angrily.

Rema began crying again as she shook her head emphatically, "No, we only spoke. I was only doing it for my cousin's sake. He was so sad and lost after her death; he needed a friend."

Adan released his wife's arms and began pacing the room. "A friend? Is that what they call co-conspirators on your homeworld?"

"I had nothing to do with the bombing! I had no idea what he was planning. Do you honestly think that I could murder so many people?"

He stopped pacing for a moment to look at his wife again. He tried to not be affected by seeing her tear-stained face, but he could not. Taking a deep breath, Adan sat down on the bed and tried to calm himself. "No," he answered truthfully, "I know you're not a murderer."

Rema sniffed and wiped the tears from her eyes, "There's more."

_No, I can't handle any more._ "What is it?" Adan feared the answer to that question.

"He came by a few days ago, while you were at work."

He knew what she was speaking of, "That man that Tomas told me about; the one who he said made you cry...the one who you lied about and said was one of your old classmates. That was him?"

Rema nodded, "I didn't know he was even on Coruscant. I hadn't heard from him in weeks."

Adan laughed bitterly, "Well, he's apparently been quite busy." He sighed, "What did he want?"

"That's what I wanted to tell you. He wanted to look at one of your datapads."

_A datapad, that must be how he got hold of Imperial frequencies. That's how he knew when we were coming. _"You let him have it."

"He said that he needed it to avenge Adira's death and to save the galaxy. He said nothing about the attack."

He stood up again and closed in on Rema, "He tried to kill Lord Vader; he failed, and then kidnapped a small child. When Typho is captured, he will be interrogated and your name will come up. Oh Rema, you have no idea what you did?"

"I'm so sorry."

Ignoring her apology, Adan continued. "Let me tell you what's going to happen next. You will be brought in and interrogated. Now, I know there's a lot of rumors that go around about what an Imperial interrogation is like; let me tell you from personal experience, they're all true...Rema, all of them!"

Rema backed away and Adan could see fear in her eyes. _Good, I hope I'm scaring her; she needs to know what she has done._ He grabbed her hand so she could not escape him, "They will shoot you up with drugs that will rob you of your sense of self; you will know nothing but pain. You will suffer every indignity imaginable, and all that will seem like a holiday compared to what will happen once Vader gets hold of you!"

She wrenched her hand from his. Rema looked like she wanted to say something, but decided against it. Instead she sat down in the middle of the bed with her knees against her chest and her head bowed.

"Did you even think about Tomas when you did this? Do you have any idea what will happen to him?"

Rema shook her head, "It was my mistake...my crime. You will take care of Tomas after I am executed." Her voice was weak and devoid of emotion.

"No, it doesn't work that way. Tomas will most likely be placed in an Imperial run orphanage and then be conscripted into the military as soon as he comes of age."

"But why would they take him from you?"

Adan sat down on the bed next to his wife, "If I do not turn you in immediately after learning of this, I will be considered just as guilty in the eyes of the Emperor. Even if I do, there's a chance that he'll still be taken away. The Empire takes a dim view of traitors; remember what happened to the Jedi."

Rema looked at her husband thoughtfully, "Then you'll have to turn me in. I won't let you and Tomas pay for my crime."

He knew the wisdom in what she was asking him to do, sacrifice her to keep their son from being taken away, but Adan did not think that he could bear to actually do it. His position would require him to witness his beloved's interrogation; he was sure Vader would insist.

This was the day that he feared the most, the day when he would be forced to choose between his wife and the Empire. He wished that there was someone to turn to, but there was no one. Knowing Rema was waiting for a response, he turned to her, "I'll wait and see how things turn out. I'm not going to do anything yet, at least while Typho still on the loose."

Rema buried her head into Adan's shoulder; he could feel her tears wetting the sleeves of his uniform. "I'm so sorry."

"I know."

* * *

Leia was tired; it had been hours since the man who took her stopped for a rest. After he had first taken her, the man ran while holding her for a while and then he put her in a speeder. After a ride that never seemed to end, he left the speeder and they went on foot again.

The man had hold of her hand and pulled the princess along. Leia's arm was really sore and she was terrified. He had promised her many times that he would not hurt her, but she did not believe him. She wanted to go home, back to Alderaan and never come back to this horrible planet again.

"Where are we going?" She asked again; he had not given her an answer before and she really did not expect one, but Leia hoped that maybe it would make him stop for just a moment; she was so exhausted.

He did not stop; he only glanced back at the princess momentarily before continuing on his way. "We'll be there soon, but we have to hurry. Stop asking me questions!"

It was becoming harder and harder to not give into fear, but the princess tried to remain brave. _What would father do?_ "What do you want; we can negotiate."

He laughed, "I don't think the Empire is going to be in the mood for negotiation."

"Why did you take me?"

He stopped and turned to the princess. She could see something dangerous in his eyes, "I told you, stop talking." He pointed to the general area, "Look around you. Does this look like the Coruscant that you have seen before?"

For the first time since the ordeal began, Leia took a good look at her surroundings. He was right; this was a part of the capital that she had never seen. It looked like it was underneath the great buildings. It was dark, dirty, and the few beings around seemed very unsavory.

The man bent down closer to the princess, "This is the capital's undercity; the part of Coruscant that the Emperor couldn't tame. There are more dangerous things down here than stormtroopers. Trust me little one, I am the least of your worries here." He then began walking briskly again, pulling Leia behind him.

Finally, they reached the end of a long alleyway and the man pulled some sort of device out of his pocket. He pressed a few buttons, and what was once looked like a solid durasteel wall opened up to reveal another corridor. "We're almost there, let's go."

The corridor led to a series of turbolifts and even more hallways. He stopped at a door with an access panel next to it. "Here we are, let's just hope the Emperor didn't find out about this. If he did, things will soon get very interesting."

"Where are we?"

The man pressed a few buttons on the access panel and suddenly the door opened. Leia felt a strange sensation as she peered into the dark room beyond the door. She wanted to see what was inside but was afraid. He ushered her into the room and began working with a nearby computer console. "We are at the last place where they would look for us."

Leia tried to make out forms in the near darkness, but it was impossible. She saw what looked like another door. "And that is?"

Immediately, that door opened to reveal a room like she had never seen before. It was huge, with high ceilings and columns. Leia felt drawn to the place; and she had a strange sense of being at home here in this unfamiliar and dark building.

The man walked up to her, "We're in the old Jedi temple."

She turned to him sharply, "How did you get in here; the entire place is guarded."

"No, just the grounds around the temple. I'm sure the Emperor doesn't trust stormtroopers in this place. The inside is guarded with an advanced security system; fortunately, I am very much familiar with systems like these and know how to disable them without detection."

Leia was torn, she was being held captive but she could not help but be excited about where she was. This was the building that she had wanted to get a look at when she first arrived on Coruscant. She could not believe that she was actually inside it.

She looked around and could see scorch marks all over the walls. "What happened here?"

"One of the Emperor's many atrocities." He began leading the princess further into the building; his small hand-held lamp was their only source of light in the vast room. "But it wasn't the first, and definitely not the last."

"Is this where the Jedi were executed?" Leia remembered reading about this in her history studies.

The man turned to the princess, "This was not an execution; it was a slaughter led by Lord Vader himself."

The continued walking until they came upon strange shapes lying on the floor. It took Leia a moment before she realized what they were and then she screamed in terror.

Lying in various places throughout the large room were skeletal bodies surrounded by fabric in varying shades of brown. Leia wanted to close her eyes to block out the horrible sight, but she could not. She only stood in the same spot, completely unmoving.

The man seemed disturbed as well; he surveyed the room with a look of sheer horror that matched Leia's own. "The entire building is a tomb; he left them here to rot."

"Why?"

"I don't know, maybe as a monument to his greatest victory."

Leia felt strange, almost like she and the man were not the only ones in the temple. She felt like she was being watched by many eyes but she could not see anyone. "We can't stay here."

"We'll go to another room, but we're staying in the temple. It's the only place where they won't look for me. I need time." He began leading her to another area, away from the horrific scene before them.

Leia looked up at him with pleading eyes, "Please let me go."

"Believe me when I tell you, I bear no ill will toward you; but I cannot let you go. I'm sorry."

Tears began streaming down the princess' cheeks. _Please find me Father._


	22. Chapter 21

_**Chapter 21:**_

"Mother, are you all right?" Sabé's nine-year-old son had been watching his mother for hours, and her demeanor was beginning to worry him. The former handmaiden had been very quiet for several hours. She was reeling from the double shock of seeing Leia being kidnapped and from finding out that one of the most honorable men she had ever known had been the one to carry it out.

Sabé gave Cadin what she hoped was a reassuring smile; but she imagined that it looked as artificial as it felt. "I'm just worried about Princess Leia." Being an Alderaanian, even by marriage, Sabé was duty bound to be worried about the fate of their kidnapped High Princess.

However, the terror that she felt coursing through her at the thought of Leia being in danger was more than just patriotism; Sabé knew whose little girl the princess really was. The urge to protect Leia like the former handmaiden had once protected her mother swelled within her. _I have to do something._

"I'm worried too." Cadin, and the rest of the children, knew the princess from the few hours that she had spent at the Komour residence. Sabé knew that her son had been quite taken with the pretty young princess. "Why would someone kidnap her?"

"I don't know, son." The universe seemed to be turning upside-down. A man that she thought was one of the most honorable men in the galaxy had not only snatched a small child from the streets, but had been accused of murdering hundreds of thousands. Sabé could not believe it--she did not want to believe it. _There has to be an explanation; he couldn't have done this. The Typho that I knew would never have done this._

"Where could he have taken her? I can't believe no one has found them yet; there are troopers everywhere."

Cadin was correct; looking out the window of their residence, Sabé could see the entire district seemingly painted white by the sheer number of stormtroopers combing the area. Multiple buildings had been searched, and there were reports of the soldiers shooting a few beings because they were not as cooperative with the searches as the troopers would have liked. Finding Typho had become the Empire's number one priority and nothing would get in the way of that goal.

Sabé feared for Leia; not only because she had been kidnapped, but mostly because she knew the Empire did not care one bit about the life of a hostage. If he was found, stormtroopers would begin shooting and would barely acknowledge a small child in between them and their objective.

"Mother, you got very upset when you found out the kidnapper's name. Did you know him?" Cadin was very much like his father, something that Sabé wished he was not sometimes; he was almost Jedi-like in his perceptions. Like Jorran, she had never been able to hide anything from him.

"I knew him; he was captain of Naboo royal security. He protected Queen Amidala when she was a senator."

Cadin, like all of her children, was well aware of his mother's past as a member of the highly honored bodyguard and decoy team for the Queen of Naboo. However, it was something that Sabé always discouraged her children from talking about. One reason was because of Padmé's very public disagreements with Palpatine before he was Emperor, and also because talking about her dead friend was just too painful for the former handmaiden.

Cadin looked confused, "Why would that post be filled by someone who would do something like that?"

Sabé shook her head, "He wasn't like that when I knew him. He was good, decent, and honorable."

"Why did he change?"

"I don't know the answer to that; I wish I did." Sabé knew that nothing had been untouched by the rise of the Emperor. Everyone and everything in the entire galaxy had been altered in some manner, whether good or bad. The former handmaiden also recognized that she was not the same woman that she was before the first Empire Day. _I wonder what hell Typho went through to change him._

Cadin did not speak for a few seconds; he seemed to be working out a problem in his head. Finally, he looked up at his mother who was still watching the masses of stormtroopers from the window. "You were once part of the same Naboo security force that he was. Did your planet's government have any hidden places on Coruscant, to go during an emergency? Maybe he went there thinking no one would find him."

Sabé turned away from the window to look at her son. _I can't believe I didn't think about that before._ The Naboo government did not have official safe houses that she knew of; however, she was aware of a secret entrance to the lower levels of the Jedi temple. It was an entrance that only a few Jedi masters were aware of. _He might have taken her there thinking that it would be the last place anyone would look._

She learned of it during Queen Amidala's visit to Coruscant after the Trade Federation's invasion of Naboo. Master Qui-Gon Jinn had told Captain Panaka that if there were any threats, to take Queen Amidala to the Jedi temple using this route. The entire security team had also been told about this entrance as well. _Panaka would have told Typho about it once he began protecting Padmé._

"Cadin, you are a genius!" Sabé exclaimed as she left the room to go to her bedroom. _I must find Typho before this gets out of hand. Maybe I can talk to him and get him to stop this madness._

He followed his mother and found her going through her closets frantically. "What's wrong? What are you doing?"

Sabé stopped and met her son's worried gaze. Suddenly, doubt crept into her mind about what she was planning to do. She knew that it was very dangerous, especially considering the Jedi temple's status as an area that was completely off limits; and those caught trespassing were, on many occasions, shot on site. _I am not just going to trespass on the grounds; I'm going to go inside. If I am caught, my children grow up without a mother._

She never thought she would be in the position of having to choose between protecting the child of a long-dead friend and her family. She then thought about the danger that Leia was in. _If the Empire finds Typho, she will most likely be caught in the crossfire. I cannot let that happen!_

Her decision was made; she decided that she had to be the handmaiden again. A handmaiden kept her lady from being harmed and that was what she was going to do; but this time it was Padmé's daughter that she was to protect.

"Son, I'm going to have to be gone for a little while. I'm going to contact your tutor; she will look after you and the girls until your father gets home."

"Where are you going?"

"It's just an errand; I'll be back soon."

* * *

The Jedi temple was very large; and each dark room connected with another in an endless maze of horrors. The bodies were everywhere; and it did not matter where they went; they could not escape them. 

Leia could tell that the man who had kidnapped her was just as disconcerted by the presence of the numerous skeletons as she was; but he was trying to at least look like he was still in control of the situation. It was all an act though; Leia could tell that this had not turned out like he had planned.

Finally, they found a room that seemed to be empty and away from the windows. "We'll stay here for a while." The man announced while trying to appear calm.

The princess sat down on the floor; she closed her eyes wishing that she was someplace else. She wanted to see the Jedi temple from the first moment that she arrived on Coruscant, but she never imagined the horrors that it contained. _What kind of being who do such a thing?_

The man sat down across from her and gave her, what looked like, some kind of food. "Here, eat this, it's emergency rations. I know it's been a while since you've had anything."

Leia accepted it gladly; she was very hungry. As she ate, she noticed the man staring at her, but his expression was hard to determine in the near darkness of this tomb. "What's wrong?"

He shook his head, "Nothing, just finish your meal." He began working intently on some small device.

"What is your name?"

The man looked at her in sharp annoyance, "Why do you want to know?"

Leia shrugged, "I just do. I don't know what to call you."

The man did not answer for a few minutes; he just continued to work on his electronic device. She was surprised when he finally spoke. "I might as well; everyone in the galaxy probably knows who I am by now. You shouldn't be left out. My name is Typho."

"Why did you take me?" Leia asked in a small voice, hoping that she would not provoke him to anger.

"I didn't mean you any harm; and please believe me when I tell you that I will not mistreat you in any way. I just had to get away."

"You're away from them now; please let me go," Leia pleaded.

The man suddenly began to lunge for her, "Hush now! You're not going anywhere!"

In terror, Leia tried to back away from him but was stopped by a wall. "Please don't do this, you promised!"

Typho's explosive anger seemed to fade as he returned to his previous position. "Ask my former comrades, my word really doesn't mean much."

Leia knew that the most prudent thing to do was to remain silent, but she found herself curious about this man. Against what her father would say was her better judgment, the princess asked a question that had been nagging at her since she saw the Imperial forces attempt to arrest him, "How did you get away from Lord Vader?"

"Believe me, that wasn't the plan, Princess."

"You know who I am?"

He sighed and put down the device he had been working on, he grasped her right hand and held it up momentarily before letting it go. "Your ring, it's has on it the royal seal of Alderaan. If I remember correctly, that seal is only worn by the one currently occupying the throne and by those who are in line for the throne." Typho grimaced, "That would make you the High Princess of Alderaan, wouldn't it?"

"Yes."

Typho laughed bitterly, "Of course, of all the people I could have taken, I get the next in line to the Alderaanian throne."

"I'm guessing that wasn't what you intended."

"No, very little about this operation has gone right, I shouldn't be surprised anymore."

Leia pointed the object that he had been working on, "What is that?"

Typho picked it up and looked at it with distain, "It was to be the salvation of the galaxy, or at least mine; now it's a worthless piece of junk."

"What do you mean?"

"You certainly are full of questions. Do you fear me, Princess?"

Leia did not answer and she refused to look away from the man who had kidnapped her. She was frightened by him, but for reasons she could not explain, she felt stronger and more confident within the walls of this abandoned tomb. "You didn't answer my question, what is that?"

"It was to destroy Vader."

"Nothing can kill him."

Typho angrily threw the device down, "All monsters can be killed, I have to believe that; but this machine wasn't enough to do the job."

"Monster?" Ever since her first encounter with the second in command of the Empire, Leia had feared Vader very much; but this was the first time that she had heard an adult refer to him as a monster.

"Yes, little princess, that is what he is; he is a tyrant and a murderer, just like the Emperor. Everywhere he goes, he leaves destruction in his wake. Just look around you, as I said, this was his handiwork. He destroys everyone who gets in his clutches."

"He questioned me once, and he let me go."

"Trust me; you won't be that lucky that next time."

"You seem to know a lot about him."

"I know more than most." Typho then looked at his wrist chrono, "We need to move to another part of the building. It's not good to stay in once place, just in case the internal sensors are put back online." Effectively cutting off the princess' current line of questioning, he stood up and then pulled Leia to her feet. "Come, let's go."

Leia followed Typho further into the dark building. She had the strange sensation that she was being watched by a multitude of eyes. The princess remembered stories that her cousin had told her before about ghosts of the dead that return to haunt, for all eternity, the place that they died. With the many bodies that inhabited this place, Leia figured that if there were any such thing as ghosts, this temple would have to be full of them.

Typho stopped at the entrance to another large room and shined his portable lamp into it. He did not move for a few moments, he just stared deeply into the barely illuminated space. Leia thought she could hear him mutter something about an inhuman monster. He finally looked behind him to the waiting girl, "Princess, I'm very sorry, but we're going to have to go through this room, I wish there was a way around it."

Leia wondered what was so horrific inside that room that the man who had led her through countless other rooms full of skeletons would be upset about. "Is it more bodies?"

"Yes, it is, more of Vader's handiwork; but it's the worst yet." He reached out to take Leia's hand, "Stay close to me."

The princess could not imagine how anything in that room could be worse than what she had seen. However, once she had a good look, she understood completely. There were dozens of skeletons in this room, but these bodies were much smaller than the others. "He killed children! Why?"

Typho looked down at Leia, "They were Jedi too; or at least they would have been, had they lived."

"How can a child be a traitor?"

"When that child's very existence threatens the Emperor's power, that is how."

Leia looked around and noticed small rooms connected to the larger chamber that they were currently in. One of them, in particular, looked like it was destroyed by a small explosion. "What happened there?"

Typho pointed the light in that direction and began walking toward it. As they got closer, Leia could make out some shapes inside the small room. Everything was destroyed and it took her a moment before she realized what the burned up furniture used to be, "They're cribs! This is where the infants must have slept. He couldn't have killed babies!"

"I'm afraid so, Princess. It looks like one of the clones tossed a small thermal detonator in here; it would have killed them all instantly."

Leia wanted to scream, cry, and rage against the man and the system of government that allowed such an atrocity. She wondered if her father knew about this. _If he knows what happened, how can he be a part of a government who would do this?_

Typho knelt down to meet the princess at her eye level, "Now you understand, Little Princess. These are the monsters that were allowed to take over the galaxy; these are your masters."

* * *

Adan had been working in his office for nearly two hours--at least that is what he told his men when he returned to Station One. In reality, the Imperial major was merely staring at the wall, brooding over his wife's confession. 

His feelings were a mixture of grief, fear, and anger--a lot of anger. It had been a long time since he had felt its icy hand grip his heart with such force. He was betrayed by the woman who he had pledged his life to--the woman he swore to love and protect until the day he died.

Her actions had not only damned herself, but they had also damned him and their son. Their lives would never be the same; Rema's actions had doomed Tomas to a life in a loveless Imperial orphanage. His happy childhood was over and he would never see either of them again.

Nol switched on the holo that he always kept on his desk. Within a fraction of a second, the image of his wife and son was before him. He had looked at this holo so many times before, but it took on a different meaning now.

As he looked at it, Adan scanned her features to search for any hint of her treason within her smiling face. He wondered if it was possible to determine one's character by a simple holo. Did the traitor always exist underneath Rema's happy veneer?

_I know how to fix this; I know how to protect my son. If I turn her in now, I might be able to convince them that I had nothing to do with it and can still raise Tomas to be a model citizen of the Empire._ The thought of bringing Rema's actions to light nearly made him sick. Despite what had happened, Adan loved his wife more than anything and did not want to imagine what would happen if he turned her in.

_I'd better start thinking about it, I must be prepared._ It would be so simple to contact Lord Vader and report Rema's treason. With all of the Imperial righteousness that he could muster, he would assure the second-in-command that he had nothing to do with it and demand her arrest and interrogation.

Next would be the arrest, which he was sure he would be forced to lead. Tomas would certainly cry as he watches his mother being dragged away into the night by white armored stormtroopers. Adan knew that Rema will be brave during the arrest; she would most likely not say a word and just accept her fate with all of the steely determination of someone who knows what is coming, but does not care because she feels she is doing what it right to protect her family.

Except that Rema would have no idea what truly awaited her. Adan, in his anger, tried to tell her a little about an Imperial interrogation during his last conversation with her; but words could hardly describe the horrors that would await her if she is taken into custody.

Adan took out his hidden bottle of Corellian whiskey and poured himself a glass. He hardly ever imbibed on the job; he only kept the bottle in case of emergency--tonight was an emergency. The strong liquid burned his throat as it slowly made its way down. It was a small distraction from the horrible knowledge of what would become of Rema after she was arrested.

His wife would then be taken first to Station One for processing. Adan imagined that already the press would probably have heard leaks about a prisoner connected to the bombing being taken into custody. Most likely, there would already be many reporters waiting by the station's main gate; all of them wanting a glimpse at the traitor.

She would then be brought before Lord Vader. Nol imagined that this would be where Rema's strength would begin to weaken; not many, prisoner or officer, could stand in front of the armored creature without at least flinching.

Playing the roll of the dutiful servant of the Emperor, Adan would stand beside Vader as the second-in-command would announce that she was to be taken to interrogation. During this time, as he would watch the mother of his child being led away in manacles, Adan could not show any emotion. He would not be able to say goodbye or tell her that he loved her; all he could do would be to stand there and be the embodiment of Imperial discipline as Rema is dragged away to her fate.

Nol took another sip as he remembered the many interrogations that he had witnessed throughout his years of service to the Empire. She would first be injected with drugs--drugs that would essentially strip her of everything that made her Rema Nol. She would forget everything except her dealings with Typho; after a while she would even forget her own name.

This would last for several hours, and then Lord Vader would begin. Adan had seen the second-in-command interrogate prisoners, and that was something that he wished he could wipe from his own memory. Until then, the major had not known that such suffering could be forced upon a subject without them dying.

Finally, after Vader determined that she is no longer of use, a nearly brain-dead Rema Nol would be publicly executed with the throng of Imperial citizens cheering the death of a traitor who was an accessory to the murder of thousands.

If he did not turn her in, Rema would eventually be found out; he knew that beyond a shadow of a doubt. He would then share his wife's fate, and Tomas would be sent to an Imperial run children's home with the stigma of being the child of traitors hanging over his head for the rest of his life. If he turned her in, Tomas would still have a chance of being able to stay with his father; but Adan would be forced to watch every aspect of her interrogation and execution.

_If I don't turn her in, Tomas will grow up in an orphanage, and he would be fed, clothed, and protected--but that's all._ He wondered if that would be enough. He would have no choice but to join the military.Adan had chosen the life of a soldier, but he did not want that choice taken from his son. _In the end, no matter what I do, will he still have a choice?_

Adan took another sip as he again stared at Rema's holo. He was angry that she had forced him into this position. _How dare she do this! She didn't even think about how this would affect us; she didn't even care._ He had a sudden impulse to throw the holo against the wall in rage, but decided on throwing his glass instead.

The sound of the glass shattering against the wall seemed to break him out of the intense mental fog that he had been in since he heard Rema's confession. His mind seemed to clear; the blinding rage that he felt against Rema, Typho, and the entire galaxy as a whole lessened in intensity. This kind of anger was self-destructive and might cause him to make a huge mistake. He knew he did not have long to think about this; he would have to decide something soon.

The chime on his office's door rang suddenly, greatly startling the major. Hoping that whoever it was would not smell the liquor on his breath, Adan pressed the button to open the door. He was relieved to see that it was his executive officer and not Lord Vader. _Of course, Vader wouldn't ring the door chime._

"Major Nol, I came to give the current status report."

Standing up to what Adan hoped was a proper military posture, he motioned him in. "Oh yes, come in Lieutenant."

As he came in the room, Adan saw that the lieutenant was trying to avoid looking at the broken glass on the floor. This man was no fool, Nol was certain that his executive officer could smell the alcohol.

He handed him a datapad, "First of all, Lord Vader just made contact. He will be arriving in a few hours."

Adan nodded and tried to keep his face as neutral as possible; but inside his fear spiked. Vader was the last being that he wanted to see today. "Yes Lieutenant, begin making preparations for his arrival."

"Next, as per the emergency protocols, we've been monitoring all information channels for certain things. Most of it is useless, but there are a few oddities that have surfaced. I thought you might want to look at the data. The details are on that datapad."

"Very good, anything else?"

"No, that's all for now."

"All right Lieutenant, you are dismissed."

He saluted and then left, much to Adan's relief; he then slumped down into his chair. He glanced at the datapad, he did not care one bit about what had been found. His job seemed so unimportant compared to what he and his family were facing.

Looking down again, Adan could not help but notice a few words that grabbed his attention. He decided to pull up additional information from the database and was amazed by what he found. _Someone has been sloppy._

Suddenly, he got an idea. It was insane and most likely doomed to failure, but he realized that it might be his family's only hope. _I have to try._


	23. Chapter 22

_**Chapter 22:**_

There was much that needed to be done; she had wasted much of the day and now work had piled up. The laundry needed to be done, the kitchen needed to be cleaned, and the organization of the pantry had to be completed. She never had a chance to finish it.

There was too much on her plate; a housewife's work was never done. She could not stop--stopping meant that she would have to think; and thinking meant that she would have to face what she had done to her family.

"Mommy, where's Daddy?"

She looked up from the clothes that she was folding to find Tomas standing in the doorway of his room staring at her. "It's past your bedtime; go back to bed."

He did not move, "Where is he? He said that he would read me a story."

Rema turned away from him; she feared that she could not look into the eyes of her son without breaking down. "He's at work, he'll be home soon."

She heard tiny footfalls coming closer to her. Rema looked up again and saw that Tomas had come to her. "Why was Daddy mad?"

"He wasn't mad." The lie barely made its way out of her mouth before she nearly choked on it. Tears were welling up in her eyes and the more she tried to fight them, the harder it was.

"He was yelling."

Rema could not deny what he heard; and she could not provide any answers to comfort him. She felt her throat begin to swell up as more tears threatened to fall. _How can I tell him that I might have destroyed his life?_ "Sometimes mommies and daddies don't agree; that doesn't mean that we don't love each other."

Tomas continued to stare at his mother; Rema could tell that he did not believe her reassurances any more than Lord Vader would believe her cries of innocence. "What is a traitor?"

With that, the front that she was putting up to her son completely collapsed. She was completely overcome with grief. Tears began to pour down her cheeks and sobs shook her; she could not speak. _Maker, what have I done?_

As she was bent over with her head in her hands, Rema could feel small arms trying to surround her. Tomas was trying to comfort her and that made her weep even more. Taking the small boy in her arms, she rocked him as she cried. She did not want to let go because she knew she had very little time left with him.

Rema knew that she was probably frightening her son very much; but she still had trouble getting hold of her emotions. Tomas did not move; he remained still and allowed his mother time to weep. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she had calmed herself enough to think clearly.

She released the boy and found that his cheeks were also streaked with tears. "I'm so sorry."

"Is Daddy coming back?"

Adan had left hours ago, after her confession. He looked to be in a daze as he announced that he was returning to work. He told her that he would think about their situation while he was gone. Rema knew that he was wrestling with whether or not to turn her in; and his decision, no matter what it was, would change their family.

She knew that the prudent thing to do was for him to turn her in. It would save her husband's life and most likely keep Tomas out of an Imperial orphanage; that was the reason why she had suggested it. She did not want him to turn her in; no one relished the thought of being subjected to Imperial justice. However, if it meant that it would save her family from destruction, she could be brave enough--At least she hoped she could be brave enough.

"He's coming back, son; he'll be here soon." The only question was, would he be bringing stormtroopers along with him. She then dismissed the idea. _He would make sure that Tomas was away from here before sending in stormtroopers. He wouldn't allow his son to witness my arrest._

Tomas climbed up in his mother's lap completely. Rema held him and relished the time that she could spend with him. She could not believe how big he was getting. It had been over three years since Tomas was brought home; but to her it seemed like yesterday.

Rema discovered that she was pregnant just days after Adan began his tour of duty on Coruscant. She was not happy to be stationed at the capital, and knowing that she would have to go through her first pregnancy in the hyper-city away from her family was almost more than she could bear.

Of course, there was HoloNet, but it did not replace having her mother or sisters physically there to help her through this new experience. She made the best of it though; and was thankful that her pregnancy was relatively uneventful.

Adan had a hard time keeping his excitement contained. For the entire term of her pregnancy, there was hardly a time when he did not have a big grin on his face. She even heard reports that her husband had a hard time keeping the smile off his face while he was on duty--despite his attempts at keeping proper military decorum.

Her going into labor was treated as a major emergency. Rema was amused as he went into full Imperial officer mode--a side of him that she had barely seen. As she was getting ready to go to the medical center, he was busy determining the quickest and safest route to take. She had to put her foot down, though, when he was about to order a stormtrooper escort.

After a labor that was way too long for Rema's liking, Tomas was finally born. She remembered the look on Adan's face when he saw his son for the first time. He stared at him in absolute wonder. It took her and the medical personnel a while to convince him that it was safe to hold the baby.

When he did, Rema saw the tough military man that she had known completely melt away. He held Tomas like he was a fragile work of art that was on the verge of breaking. Then, for the first time that she had known him, she saw tears in her husband's eyes.

Fresh tears began to fall as she remembered those days. After he was born, Rema believed that nothing could tear them apart. As she sat there holding her son, she found herself humming a lullaby that she had heard as a small child.

"Mommy, what's that song?"

"It's a song my mommy used to sing to me." Rema had no idea what made her think of that old song; she did not even remember all of the words. She did remember that it promised a child that he would be loved and protected no matter the cost. _I broke that sacred vow when I allowed Typho into our home; I deserve to die._

* * *

Tarkin hated waiting; people waited for him and not the other way around. Waiting was for lower men. His annoyance had been growing exponentially as the minutes passed. He seethed as he looked at the chrono on the desk; the man was now ten minutes late. _This is intolerable_. 

More minutes passed and finally his recalcitrant employee arrived. The man entered the office smelling of whiskey and muttering apologies. "Forgive me Governor, I was held up."

"There's no need to apologize, my opinion of you cannot get any lower. Are you drunk?"

The man shook his head emphatically, "No, I just..."

"Had to get a quick drink to keep the hands steady?" Tarkin interrupted with a sneer. "Nevermind that, I assume you have no findings to share."

He did not try to deny it; everything about his assignment to dig up damning information that connected Bail Organa with treasonous activities within the Senate seemed to be doomed from the very start. Nothing had gone right. The Empire Day bombing and the subsequent search of the Alderaanian Consulate had made his slicing attempts come to light. While his identity was not discovered, the increase in security had destroyed all of his hard work.

His failures had forced him to attempt a much more dangerous slicing technique. Instead of getting at the system indirectly from a less secure peripheral computer; he attempted to slice Bail Organa's personal system directly. It was a technique that was considered pure insanity by other slicers, and only to be used by the very brave or the truly desperate.

The danger in attempting to access a system in that manner lay not only in getting discovered by the ones whose information is getting sliced, but there was also much risk in being discovered by anyone else who might be monitoring the system.

Imperial regulations dictated that all computer systems which reside within the governmental complex had to have special software loaded that scanned the system for malicious files which, according to the Empire, could bring down all computers in the Imperial network. Almost everyone knew that the true purpose of the software was to scan for certain things inside personal files which could be interpreted as treasonous.

The software was not very effective and it was easy to hide sensitive files from it. Still, it was illegal to tamper with its operation. It was designed to send out automated data stream to the military computers if it was damaged or hindered in any way.

His last slicing attempt just hours before, had resulted in no information of substance; and worst of all, caused a computer malfunction which made a system reboot necessary. He feared that was enough to cause the Imperial file scanning software to send out an alert. If so, his situation could become even more precarious than it was now.

"Governor Tarkin, as you are aware, the new security measures are making things much more difficult."

"I am not interested in your excuses; I only want results, and I haven't gotten any from you." He sighed with much contempt, "That leaves me with only one choice; I'm canceling our arrangement."

"You can't do that!" He shouted. "I need those credits!"

"Your gambling debts will have to be paid by someone else. You are much too unstable to be any use to me." Tarkin indicated the door, "Now, leave my sight immediately."

"Please, I can get that information."

Tarkin ignored the man's pleadings, "What I can't figure out is how someone as gloriously inept as you could reach the position that you did. It doesn't say much for the Alderaanians, now does it?"

At the governor's taunting, the man's anger began to rise, "Listen to me, I will get what you need!"

"I'm sure there's a bottle somewhere that needs crawling into; go do that, and leave my office immediately."

"I'm not leaving until you listen to me." He slammed his hand down on the desk to emphasize his point.

Tarkin rolled his eyes, "Oh please, for your own good, let's not go down that road. It ends with you being shot by the guards that are stationed just down the hall."

Knowing that he was beaten, the man stumbled toward the door in a daze. Without another word, he left the office.

The governor shook his head, "Absolutely pathetic."

* * *

It was nearing midnight but Bail Organa was not about to leave the Consulate. It had been nearly twelve hours since Leia's abduction and his time since then had been filled with military questioning, interviews from Holo-reporters, and keeping his wife apprised of the situation. 

Immediately after he returned from Major Nol's questioning at Station One, Bail returned to find that Breha had been frantically trying to contact him. The news of their daughter's abduction had made it to Alderaan almost instantly after it happened. When he finally spoke to her, Bail was heartbroken to confirm that the reports were true.

In this late hour, Bail found himself alone in his office staring at a holo of Leia and Breha. He took it two years ago when the family had gone on one of its rare outings that was not political in nature. Leia wanted to visit the ocean so they took her to a private beach to let her enjoy the sand and the waves away from the eyes of reporters. It was a rare time when they could pretend, if only for a few hours, that they were not the royal family.

Leia had begged her mother to go in the water with her, and Breha did not need much convincing. He took the holo as she and Leia were struggling to stand up in the shallows while rough waves came in and made them lose their balance. Both mother and daughter was laughing so hard that Bail could not resist capturing that moment forever.

Bail felt tired, defeated, and completely helpless in the face of the overwhelming circumstances. With all of the power and influence his position afforded him, there was nothing that he could do to help his daughter; he could only wait. For reasons he did not understand, he believed that Leia was alive. He had no evidence to back it up, but still it gave him at least a little bit of comfort during this dark night.

His communication unit sounded, alerting him to an incoming message. "Organa here."

The voice of one of his assistants came through, "Senator, a message came in for you."

"Who is it from?"

"Senator Mothma, she wants to know how you are going to vote on the Fine Arts Endowment Committee's new proposal." There was much confusion evident in the assistant's voice.

Bail sighed, _Not now; by the Maker, please not now!_ That particular code was used only when members of the Organization had to meet immediately outside the Senate because of an emergency. The last thing he wanted to deal with on this night was the Organization. He was about to have the assistant send a negative reply, but then he realized that Mothma might have some information about Leia's whereabouts that might be sensitive.

With renewed hope, he accepted the meeting in the manner the code dictated. "Tell the senator that I am unsure, and further study will be required before I can be sure which way I will vote."

Quickly, Bail left the Consulate and went to their pre-designated meeting spot that they had used for many years. When he arrived at the small park, he was surprised to find no one else there. Usually, the senator from Chandrila was always first to arrive for meetings.

He waited for a few moments before he realized that he no longer was alone. Turning around quickly, panic arose within him as he saw who had arrived. "Major Nol?"

"Senator Organa, it's good to see you again," he stated simply as he strode up to the other man.

Bail was nearly frozen; he had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. He did not know what to say to this man whom he had only met a few times, and always in official capacities. Bail felt that there was nothing coincidental about this meeting. _If this is a trap, why did he come alone?_

The man spoke first, "You have a problem; there is a spy within your consulate."

The senator had been informed of the slicing attempts by Vader, and had increased security to prevent any future attacks. The Sith had informed him that the slicing had come from the inside, and the consulate had begun an investigation. However, no progress had been made as of yet. Bail still had a hard time believing that someone on the inside was responsible. "You've read Lord Vader's report."

Nol shook his head, "I'm not speaking of that. You might be interested to know that when I graduated the academy, my first assignment was as a junior intelligence officer in the Outer-Rim. There, I was a part of a team where our principle duty was to slice Hutt databases for information on their activities without their knowledge. Seeing as how the Empire isn't officially in control of their territory, yet, we had to leave no traces of our activities."

Bail surreptitiously glanced around the area, looking for Mon Mothma or any signs of additional Imperial troops. "That is fascinating; why are you telling me this in the middle of the night?"

"Senator Mothma isn't coming; she wasn't the one who sent the message." Nol chuckled, "I have to say, your group's way of calling for clandestine meetings is ingenious. Were you the one who thought it up?"

"What are you talking about?" Bail had to fight to keep himself together in the face of one of his greatest secrets being discovered. With all of the strength that he had, the senator prepared himself for what was to come.

The major produced a datapad from his pocket and handed it to him, "Your spy has been very sloppy recently."

The senator stood like a stone as he read what was before him. There, in heart-wrenching detail was information about the Organization, their recent activities, and a list of their leaders. "This is an interesting bit of fiction. What are you trying to accomplish with this?"

"Don't deny it, Senator. Listen, I'm not here to arrest you and there are no stormtroopers waiting to ambush you."

"Then what are you doing here?" Bail held up the datapad, "Where did you get this?"

"I assume that you increased security after finding out about the slicing attempts. All that did was make whoever was attacking your system more desperate--desperation breeds stupidity. As far as I can tell, he began using a more direct slicing technique."

The major continued. "While he was doing this, he triggered a glitch in one of the programs which caused the entire system to crash."

Bail then remembered hearing a report that the consulate's main computer system had been down earlier that day. However, with Leia's abduction, he barely paid any attention. He still could not understand how this led to Major Nol discovering the Organization. "There's more?"

Nol nodded, "I assume that you are aware that Imperial regulations dictate that a malicious software scanning program is to be installed on all computers within the governmental complex."

"Of course."

"And, I'm also assuming that you know the true purpose of it?"

The senator snorted bitterly, "Of course."

"If the operation of that software is interrupted in any way, authorities are alerted. Whatever he did caused the program's malfunction. The nanosecond that happened, your spy, as far as I can tell, was in the middle of covering his tracks as the alert was sent to Imperial computers."

"His actions caused a very rare glitch which opened up a gaping hole in your system. When the data stream that sends the alert to our computers was sent, files from your computer were sent as well." Nol shook his head, "This slicer must have the worst luck in the galaxy; the odds of something like this happening in one in a trillion."

Bail was beginning to see how his security was compromised. However, there were still many questions that needed answering. He did not know how a hole in his computer's security caused this man to discover the Organization. He did not store much of the information on the datapad that Nol had produced in the consulate's computer. "Is there more?"

The major nodded and continued, "This was discovered on our side, the technicians on duty filed a report which was sent to my desk. There were some files from your system that happened to leak through...files that could be damning if the right person found them."

Nol paused momentarily to let his words sink in. Bail was keeping a blank expression on his face. He was not about to give anything away, even though he was full of turmoil over what was discovered.

"Senator, you are very lucky that I was on duty tonight. Anyone else would have just passed the report on to Imperial Intelligence and not thought one more thing about it. However, Intelligence would have eventually discovered the same thing that I did."

"What did you discover? All I see here are lies. I am a loyal…"

"…servant of the Empire." Nol interrupted with a sigh. "Yes I know; that's what you all say. I know better though."

"Your security breach allowed me to access more information, once I knew what to look for. While all of the information on the datapad that I gave you is not on your computer, the files from your system pointed to others in the Senate who are involved with you. Some of them are not as careful as you are, Senator."

"I've spent the last several hours piecing it all together. I don't have everything; but I certainly have enough. Your entire organization is built on a very shaky house of cards. If one card crumbles, the entire structure is destroyed."

Bail took a deep breath as he formulated his response. "What is it that you want? Is this extortion?"

Nol shook his head emphatically, "Absolutely not!"

"Somehow, I don't believe you."

The major bowed his head for a moment and then again looked at Bail. For the first time that night, he began to show cracks in his tough demeanor. The senator could see fear and grief in his eyes. Before him, he saw a man who seemed to have the weight of the galaxy upon him.

Nol then grabbed the datapad from Bail's hand. "I closed your breach in security from my end and made certain that no one else could learn of your...activities. This datapad is the only record in existence." The major then threw it on the ground and crushed it underneath his heel.

Bail stared at the man in shock. "I don't understand."

"I don't want credits and I don't want any political favors. This discovery has proven to me that you are the only man that can help me."

"What kind of help?"

Nol sighed, "If I help you find your daughter without bloodshed; can you please help me save my wife?"


	24. Chapter 23

_**Chapter 23:**_

It was a long journey from Sabé's home in 500 Republica to the alleyways in the undercity of Coruscant. Not for the first time, the former handmaiden questioned what she was doing. The entire trip to the secret entrance to the Jedi temple had been filled with second guessing, guilt, and fear.

She was not afraid for her own life, but she thought about her children. If her search for Leia ended badly, they would grow up without a mother. She loved her children and her husband, but her duty to her former mistress would not allow her to turn back.

Avoiding criminals and stormtroopers alike, Sabé forged ahead toward her goal to save Leia. Even though she had nothing but a hunch that Typho would have brought her there, the former handmaiden knew that she would never forgive herself if she did not at least look for them at the temple.

As she got closer, Sabé's fear and doubt changed to steely resolve concerning her course of action. She grew more confident with each step she took. She did not completely understand how, but she somehow knew that she would soon be seeing Leia. It was an eerie feeling, but she took it as confirmation of the rightness of her actions.

Even though she felt more confident, Sabé still could not shake the feeling that someone was following her. Using every technique that she learned in the Royal Security Force, she did what she could to try to determine if there was someone behind her. However, she could never find anyone.

Hoping that it was just her imagination, Sabé cautiously made her way to the secret entrance to the Jedi temple.

To her delight, her old code worked and the door opened. After a maze of several corridors, lifts, and doorways, Sabé found herself in one of the dark rooms of the Jedi temple.

To help her get through, Sabé brought along a hand-held light; as she got further into the massive structure, she wished that she did not. The horrific sight of dozens of skeletal corpses greeted her, and the former handmaiden realized in horror that the Jedi who fell here were left to rot.

If she was prone to superstition, she would have sworn that the temple was haunted by the ghosts of hundreds of Jedi who were not allowed to rest. Even so, the stories of hauntings her grandmother used to tell Sabé and her brothers when they were children refused to leave her thoughts.

She thought that if any building were haunted, it would be the abandoned Jedi temple. If any spirits were disquieted, it would be those of the Jedi. Many things about the first few days of the Empire were shrouded in secrecy; Vader's killing of the Jedi was not one of them. The HoloNet reported for weeks about how the _"murderous order of assassins"_ was ruthlessly stamped out of existence by the Emperor's new henchman.

Sabé did not like looking at the skeletal corpses that littered the corridors and rooms, but she felt that she owed them some kind of acknowledgement. They were once members of a noble order of beings that protected the galaxy. Their only crime was not seeing how far the Republic had fallen, and how much lust for power permeated the walls of the Senate chambers, before it was too late.

They deserved so much better than this, even in death. Sabé figured that the least she could do was not look upon their remains with disgust.

Sabé opened the door to another room, this time she saw smaller skeletons. Tears formed in her eyes as she realized that the children that the Jedi adopted into the order were not spared Vader's wrath. They had perished along side their masters. Somehow, she had hoped that the children were not killed, but Sabé realized that it was a fool's hope.

Hatred for the Emperor and Vader flared up inside her. She knew they were ruthless, but she never imagined that they were so evil to slaughter children.

As Sabé was looking down at the body of what appeared to be a child of about three or four years of age, suddenly she heard something behind her. She did not even have time to pull out her blaster before she was knocked to the floor.

Strong arms gripped her as she was hauled to her feet. Her assailant quickly removed her blaster, and it was only then that she was turned around and was met with the face of someone who was once one of the most honored men on Naboo. "Hello Typho."

* * *

Imperial Center was filled with many reminders of the old Republic. Despite the efforts of the Imperial military and organizations such as COMPNOR, the planet was filled with abandoned governmental buildings that still displayed the symbol of the Republic. 

They remained as ghosts testifying the fact that it would be a long time before the former government would be forgotten. Major Adan Nol and Senator Bail Organa were utilizing one such abandoned installation as a meeting place.

"Are you certain this is secure?" Asked the senator. He did not trust the major, but his desire to see his daughter safe was overriding his self-preservation instinct.

"Yes, no one comes here anymore; I know this building is not watched."

"I certainly hope not." Bail took a deep breath, "Are you now prepared to tell me your plan? How can I save your wife, and how can you get my daughter back?"

Adan knew that he was taking a great risk, but he could not think of anyone else that could help him. "My wife has been in contact with Typho, and she supplied him with information."

"Your wife aided the mass murderer who now has my daughter; and you expect me to help you?"

"I truly believe that she did not know what he was planning. My wife may have strong…opinions; but she would never have aided him had she known." He hoped that he sounded more confident in that assertion than he felt.

Bail regarded the other man for a moment; Adan felt that he was being sized up as his words were weighed. "Strong opinions?"

"She hates the Empire." The major admitted bluntly. "I don't know how long she has felt this way; but she does. She feels that the Emperor is nothing but a dictator."

"How does she know Typho?"

"He was married to her cousin."

At that moment, Adan wished that he had the ability to read minds. Bail Organa's expression was completely blank; he was not giving anything away. This man was his only hope. If the senator refused to help him, Nol had nowhere else to turn.

"And you say that she had nothing to do with the bombing."

"She was not involved, I promise you."

Bail nodded, "I believe you; I'm not sure why, but I do. If Typho is captured, his interrogation will reveal your wife's role; whatever it might have been."

"I can't let that happen."

"Isn't it your duty as an officer in the Imperial military to expose traitors within Empire?"

Nol cursed inwardly at the reminder. He believed in the Empire; despite its many sins, Adan knew that it was the only way to keep such a vast galaxy from chaos--at least he once believed it very strongly. He would have done almost anything to protect it; but sacrificing his wife was too much. Every man had his limits, and Adan had found his. "If it were your wife, Senator, would you allow her to be tortured?"

The Senator raised his eyebrow, "You're admitting that the Empire tortures its prisoners."

"We do not have time for this."

"I just want to be certain that I can trust you."

Adan sighed, "Haven't I already proven that? The time for action is now; we cannot wait any longer."

"I just want to know if you are prepared to betray the Empire. In their eyes, that is what you'll be doing; whether or not they find out about this. In your heart, you will always know. Major Nol, are you prepared to be a traitor?"

Adan wondered if the Senator was always this good at getting to the heart of the matter. "Senator Organa, when I decided to protect Rema and come to you for help; that was when I betrayed the Emperor. It wasn't an action that made me a traitor; it was the thought. At that moment, I became an enemy of the Empire."

Adan paused to collect his thoughts before continuing, "Please understand, I never wanted to make waves; all I wanted was to be a good father and husband. I'm not a revolutionary, but I cannot let the Empire destroy my family. If that makes me a traitor, then so be it."

Bail nodded, "I understand you, more than you think. Let's get started, as you said, there is not much time."

* * *

The Jedi temple seemed endless as Sabé was being led through the dark corridors and even darker rooms. She was glad that light was limited because she did not think that she could stand seeing another body. Of all the things that she had tried to prepare herself for before entering the temple, having to witness the aftermath of Lord Vader's slaughter was not one of them. 

Her arm was beginning to ache where Typho had a firm grip, and she could barely keep up with his quick strides. Occasionally, he would stop and check the status of the security system to make certain that they were not detected by the stormtroopers guarding perimeter of the building.

Finally, they made it to their destination and Sabé nearly cried in relief when she saw Leia. The princess' eyes met hers and the former handmaiden knew that the relief was mutual. "Sabé!"

Typho let go of her arm and she immediately ran to the princess' side and enveloped her into a hug. "Oh my precious girl, I'm so relieved to see you. Are you all right?"

Leia sobbed as she was held by the woman. "How did you find me?"

Sabé released the princess enough to look at her. She used her sleeve the wipe the tears from the girl's eyes. "Just a very good hunch. Are you all right?"

Leia nodded but tears still flowed, "He hasn't hurt me."

The handmaiden began a cursory inspection of Leia's face and limbs, checking for injuries. "That's good, are you hungry or thirsty?"

"I have fed her," Typho interjected. "I'm not a monster."

"The evidence says otherwise; or are you going to tell me that you didn't have anything to do with the bombing?"

"Those were necessary losses!"

Sabé let go of Leia and stood to face him, "You sound like an Imperial. I'm certain even Vader has said something to that effect."

She was not prepared for Typho's immediate reaction; he drew back so violently that she thought for a moment that he might strike her. "If you ever speak such things to me again, I promise you, those words will be your last."

Sabé took a deep breath, "How did it come to this?"

Typho looked away, "I'm not the man I once was."

"That much is obvious. You were Senator Amidala's head of security; she trusted you more than anyone. I know my lady would not have allowed you to be in such a position had you not been honorable." Sabé shook her head sadly, "I see the government wasn't the only thing that changed in the last eight years."

Sabé expected him to react even more violently but was surprised when he remained still. When he finally turned back to her, she did not see fury; instead she saw weariness. Sabé could see that the years had taken their toll on his features. He was not even fifty, but the deep lines on his face gave the appearance of a man much older. Every line and wrinkle seemed to tell its own sad story.

"What are you trying to do? Why did you come here?" He asked.

"I came to get Leia; and I had to know if what they said about you was true. I'm sad to say that they were right."

"How did you know I would be here?"

"I was once in Her Majesty's service, as you know. I was told of the secret entrance to the temple as well."

Typho gestured to indicate the room littered with the abandoned bones of the Jedi younglings, "Now you see Vader's handiwork; you should understand that I did everything to destroy him. He sold out the galaxy for the sake of his own power, and he has killed an unimaginable number of beings for the Emperor." He stopped momentarily as he began to be overcome by emotion. "He killed my wife!"

Sabé knew that she had to tread lightly; one wrong word could lead to Leia being harmed. She was well aware that Typho was capable of anything. "I'm sorry, but what happened does not justify what you did."

"They deserved it!" He stormed, "They were the one who ushered in this brave new galaxy that we live in. They watched and applauded as they sold their souls to the Emperor. Palpatine and Vader would not be ruling if the people had not allowed it. If you ask me, they deserved much worse!"

The former handmaiden was stunned silent, she could not believe that Typho could try to justify the carnage that he had caused. She was not only disturbed by his words, but also by a quiet voice in the most secret and darkest part of her soul that echoed those same sentiments. She too had felt anger at those that ushered the Emperor into power. However, Sabé had been forced to bury the blinding rage that had once threatened to consume her.

Typho pointed at the former handmaiden, "You know I'm right. You may disagree with my methods, but you know that they deserved it. I can see it in your eyes, Sabé."

"Don't presume to know me." She replied weakly.

"I know you are the wife of Jorran Komour, the ambassador from Alderaan. I imagine that you've had to participate in diplomatic events and dinner parties with your husband. Tell me, Handmaiden, how does it feel to share drinks and meals with those who sold the galaxy for a chance to gain a crumb of power?"

Sabé's anger rose, "I am not having this conversation with you."

Typho ignored her and continued, "Doesn't it make you angry that your children will have to suffer under the Emperor because of those traitors?"

"Stop it!" She yelled.

Typho nodded, "Ah, I see it. It's not your children that are going to suffer under the Emperor's rule. They are of the class that will benefit from it." He smiled bitterly, "What do you think Senator Amidala would say if she could see the collaborator you've become?"

Sabé's rage exploded; she did not care how dangerous this man was. She slapped him with as much force her petite body could generate. "Don't you dare invoke her name!" A quiet whimper in the corner of the room reminded the former handmaiden of her true purpose here. She turned around to see that Leia had backed further away from them.

Sabé turned her attention back to Typho, "Even now, I am the one protecting my lady's interests." As soon as she uttered those words, she regretted them.

"What do you mean?"

"I cannot discus it." She took a deep breath in a vain attempt to calm herself. "Just believe me when I tell you that I know more than you do about certain things."

Typho regarded her with curiosity, "What things?"

Sabé's eyes wandered in Leia's direction. "Just let me take the princess. I will not tell a soul where you are."

"What does Senator Amidala have to do with the Alderaanian princess?"

The former handmaiden did not respond. Seeing her reluctance, Typho warned Leia to stay where she was, grabbed Sabé by the arm, and took her to an adjacent room. The door to the room had a window so Typho could still see the princess, but Leia could not hear them. "Whatever it is, you don't want to say it in front of the girl. Now we're alone, tell me now!"

Sabé hoped that she would not regret what she was about to say; but she knew that it might be the only way to convince Typho to let Leia go. "I want you to look at the princess."

Typho complied and then returned his attention to the handmaiden, "All right, I've looked at her."

"Doesn't she look familiar?"

"What game are you playing, Sabé?"

"She's been with you this long, and you still cannot see it?"

"What are you trying to do?"

Sabé sighed, "How could you be so blind? Look in her eyes, Typho, and tell me that you don't see it!"

"I warned you, stop playing games!" Typho demanded.

"You knew that Senator Amidala was pregnant before she died, almost full term?"

"Yes, and the baby died with her."

"What if the baby didn't die?" Sabé asked, hoping that he would begin connecting the dots. "Were you there when she died?"

"No," He admitted, "She told me and Dormé to stay on Coruscant; she said that it was a personnel matter. She left to go after…" Typho trailed off as his anger increased.

Sabé wanted to know more about the night she died, but her first priority was to get Leia away from Typho. "Think about it, our lady and Senator Organa were good friends and allies in the Senate. The Republic falls, she dies mysteriously, and Bail Organa suddenly adopts an infant child in the midst of all that upheaval."

Typho immediately turned his head toward Leia's direction. He seemed to be looking at her with new sight, "No, it can't be."

"Now, look in her eyes and tell me that you don't see Padmé Amidala staring back at you."

The former handmaiden was not prepared for Typho's reaction. She had hoped that this revelation would sober him, but it had the opposite effect. He turned away from the door and began madly pacing the room, "The child survived!"

"Yes, now you see why I came; I had to protect her. Senator Organa doesn't know that I figured it out; and Leia certainly doesn't know the truth."

"Of course he wouldn't tell her; no child should have to live with the burden of knowing what monstrous bloodline she comes from."

Sabé reached out and grabbed Typho's arm to stop his pacing, "How dare you say such things about Amidala!"

"I'm not speaking of her, Sabé; a child has a mother and a father. Now it's time for me to tell you a few things. Tell me, did you know who the Senator was married to?"

She shook her head, "No, I never asked."

"My position made it necessary that I know. She was married to Anakin Skywalker." Typho spit out the name like it was a curse.

"The Hero with No Fear?" Skywalker's exploits during the Clone War were well known.

Typho glared at the former handmaiden, "Yes, that's what they called him. He's the only Jedi with the distinction of not being branded a traitor. Have you ever wondered why that is?"

Sabé had never really considered it; but it was unusual. Skywalker was even given a posthumous commendation for being the _"only Jedi who faithfully stood with the galaxy and abandoned the traitorous order to which he belonged."_ It was said that he had been killed by his former master, Obi-Wan Kenobi, when he refused to stand with the Jedi against Palpatine.

"Anakin Skywalker leaves Coruscant and Senator Amidala follows him. Days later, the senator is dead and so is, if we're to believe the Emperor, Skywalker. Within days after that, Darth Vader suddenly shows up as the Emperor's right hand man and no one ever asks who he is or where he came from."

Sabé feared where he was going with this. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that 'Hero with No Fear' and Darth Vader are one in the same."

Eight years of missing pieces began to fall into place; and no matter how much she did not want to believe it, Sabé felt that what he said was absolutely true. "She would never marry such a man."

"She was fooled like everyone else, and it eventually killed her. I believe that Vader killed her when she was no longer useful to him."

Sabé wanted to curl into a ball and weep. The burden of such a harsh truth weighed heavily. Tears began to fall and she cried for her dead friend and the child that somehow survived.

Typho returned to gaze through the window at the child that was beginning to fall asleep on the hard floor of the abandoned temple. Sabé could see a mixture of emotions evident on his face, but what stood out the most was anger. He glared at the child as if she was a hated enemy. "It's ironic, my wife was pregnant when Vader killed her, and now his child is within my grasp; but he doesn't know it."

"What are you thinking?" Sabé demanded.

"I could so easily kill the girl, and there would be absolutely nothing that he could do about it."

Sabé gasped in horror, "I wouldn't let you!"

Typho turned back to the panicked woman, "There would also be little that you could do about it as well."

"You'd have to step over my dead body to do it."

"As you've so eloquently pointed out, I've killed countless thousands; one aging handmaiden would not be difficult."

"Please, think about Amidala. That is also her child!"

"You think I don't know that! That is the only thing that is keeping me from going out there and snapping that child's neck."

"Don't do this."

Before Typho had a chance to respond, an electronic device on his wrist began emitting a faint noise. He looked around quickly, "Did you tell anyone where you were going?"

Sabé shook her head emphatically, "No, what's going on?"

"The internal alarm that I set up has gone off, we have a visitor."


	25. Chapter 24

_**Chapter 24:**_

Bail Organa had always been a patient man. Years of experience with politics and diplomacy had helped him, but it always came naturally to him. His colleagues in the Organization had even been frustrated on many occasions by his caution, but it had so far kept them all alive.

But as he sat in the control room of an abandoned military installation waiting for any news about his abducted daughter, the senator found his vaunted patience quickly coming to an end.

He always believed that the night that he returned to Coruscant with Master Yoda and Obi-Wan after the purges began would be the longest of his entire life. Eight years ago, he waited in anguish as the future of the galaxy was being decided by Yoda going up against Palpatine. Bail hoped that if there was anyone who could stop the self-professed Emperor, it would be the ancient Jedi master. He was wrong.

That night ended with a clandestine escape from the capital helped by the utter chaos of the first hours of the newly birthed Empire.

Bail believed that he would never have to endure a night so long, but he was wrong. It had been many hours since Leia's kidnapping, but it felt like years.

His beloved daughter's life was now in the hands of a most unlikely ally, an Imperial major. The Senator did not know much about the man, and he barely trusted him; but he believed that he was the only one that could help him.

Adan Nol had been working non-stop for nearly two hours. An occasional nervous glance in Bail's direction was the only indication that the other man was even aware of the Senator's presence. He had much to lose as well.

One of the many consoles began beeping softly and Nol quickly went to it. "Interesting."

Bail came over to him, "What is it?"

The major did not look away from the console, "I've been monitoring the automated security drones, something odd happened to one of them."

"Odd? Could it be a lead?"

"I don't know, as you know, thousands of unmanned drones hover over the entire planet, but we also have them in key ground locations. They only transmit when they detect something."

Bail nodded, he was well aware of them. They were a fairly recent addition to life on Coruscant. The hovering machines were no more than a meter wide, but they were an ever present reminder that the Emperor was always watching. "Was something detected?"

"I'm not certain, it only transmitted a few seconds of data before being reset to normal."

"What could cause that?"

"It may be a glitch, or it could be tampering. I can't tell from here."

"Aren't they designed to resist tampering?"

Adan nodded, "Yes, they are programmed to explode if someone unauthorized tries to tamper with them."

The senator had always suspected as much, but he was never certain. "How large of an explosion?"

The major punched a few more buttons before answering, "Not enough to kill the saboteur, but it will cause burns and lacerations. Of course, the explosion alerts authorities."

"And the burns easily identify the perpetrator."

"It's simple and effective if you ask me."

"It's what I've come to expect." Bail tried to hide his disgust. It was an effective security countermeasure, and it certainly was not the worst thing the Emperor ever conceived. However, the peace-loving son of Alderaan still could not help but be disturbed by it.

Adan glanced back at the other man, but did not to speak. Bail knew that, despite his recent betrayal, there was still much of the Empire in the major.

"Is it possible that someone got around the countermeasures?" Asked the senator.

"Yes, it's possible," Nol hesitated, "but that would require an impressive amount of skill."

"Skills that Typho no doubt possesses." Bail knew that the former security chief of Senator Amidala was very capable. Like the Alderaanians, the Naboo were also pacifists. They relied on very good defense instead of going on the offensive. The royal guards were some of the most well-trained beings in the galaxy. "Where was the drone?"

Nol punched a few more buttons and stared at the screen, "I'm retrieving that information now, but it's slow going with these old computers."

He continued to work for a few more minutes. Finally, a series of electronic tones indicated that the computer was finished processing. "Here it is." Adan scanned the results and frowned, "That can't be."

"What is it?"

"It says that the drone was located in sector M4-239, the Jedi temple."

Bail felt sick, if Typho somehow got inside there it would be the last place anyone would look for him. He saw the logic in it, but the senator would have rather Typho had taken his daughter to one of the many seedy bars that were all over the Coruscant undercity then that tomb. "If anyone could get around the security in the temple, it would be Typho."

Adan shook his head, "Senator, the systems that guard the rest of Imperial Center are like children's toys compared to what guards the remains of the temple. Nothing is allowed in there…no stormtroopers, no Imperial Guard; only the Emperor is permitted access. I'm not even sure Lord Vader is allowed in there."

"Could you get around those systems?"

"It could have been a glitch."

"How likely is that?"

Bail could tell that the major did not think it was likely, but feared the possibility of Typho being in the temple. It made their already dangerous and complicated situation even more so.

"Not very likely, Senator. I think I'll be able to get around the systems. I won't be able to use my access codes; that will draw Vader's attention faster than anything. I will have to use other methods."

"Could someone back at Station One have found the same information that you did?"

"It's possible, but I know who's on duty at the moment. He's not the best officer the academy ever produced. He has a tendency to overlook small details." Adan stopped and frowned, "However, if Lord Vader is there, that might motivate him to excellence."

"It's a risk we have to take."

Adan nodded, "Yes, it is, there is too much as stake; for both of us."

* * *

"We're going to have to walk the rest of the way; I don't want to risk bringing the speeder too close to the temple. It's not that far." The unlikely partners had been using an unofficially commandeered vehicle for travel from the abandoned Republic military installation to the area near the temple. 

The closer that they got, the more danger they put themselves in. Once they actually entered the restricted area, both of them knew that there was no going back. Adan tried not to think about the possibility of this risky endeavor being nothing more than a wild bantha chase. He was willing to die for his family; but if Typho was not in the temple with the girl, all of it would have been for nothing.

"How are we going to get in? We can't go in the front door." Bail Organa had so far trusted his judgment, but Adan knew that he did not trust him completely. Nol understood, he was not completely certain about the senator as well.

Despite the tense situation, Adan could not help but smile. "That's exactly how we're getting in." He expected a reaction from Organa and was not disappointed.

"Are you insane? I'm sure that door is guarded by dozens of stormtroopers."

"Not necessarily, it's the auxiliary entrances that are the most guarded. It is believed that if anyone wanted to go in, they would not go in the front door."

Bail shook his head, "How certain are you of that?"

"Very certain, I know that only five soldiers guard the front entrance. I am the one who approves all of the duty rosters for all troops stationed on Imperial Center."

"What about the ones that patrol the grounds?"

"Each of them carries a transmitter with them that indicates their position," Adan explained as he took a datapad out of his uniform's pocket. "Fortunately for all of us, I am privy to that information."

Nol's position within the ranks of the Imperial military allowed him instant access to troop movements all across the capital. Only the Emperor's personal guards were outside of his realm of influence. Adan never thought that he would ever use this information against the Empire that he pledged himself to serve all those years ago.

Guilt over what he was doing plagued the officer. His mind was in a seemingly never-ending tug-of-war. The part of him that was the Imperial officer called him a traitor of the worst kind; and the husband and father in him reminded him of his family and what would happen to him if he did not work with Senator Organa. He felt like he was being torn apart from the inside out.

If Rema and Tomas were not in danger, Adan knew that he would have been reporting the senator to his superiors.

Bail sighed in relief, "Good."

The two men walked in silence toward the abandoned temple. Nol kept himself busy by studying the datapad as they traveled. They managed to avoid all patrols, but he knew that the closer they got to the temple, the danger increased exponentially.

"What is your wife's name?"

Startled, Adan turned his head to the Senator. He wondered if the other man truly wanted to know, or if he could not stand the silence any more. "Rema."

"Your son?"

"Tomas, he'll be four in a few months." A lump began to form in the major's throat as he thought about the ones he loved beyond all reason. They were waiting at home for him. He knew that his wife was most likely not sleeping, even in this very early morning hour. She was waiting as her fate was being decided.

"If Typho does not reveal your wife's cooperation, she will be safe. It may not be necessary to have her go into hiding."

"If he is interrogated, he will. I can't risk it." Adan had thought of that, and no matter how much he desired that it would not be necessary to send Rema and Tomas away, he knew that the danger was too great as long as he was near him.

"If everything goes well, what are you going to do after your family goes into hiding?"

"I don't know, I honestly haven't thought that far ahead."

"Is your career in the military over if her connection to Typho is revealed?"

Nol shook his head, "I can claim that I had no idea of her actions and that she left on her own volition. She'll be a fugitive for the rest of her life, but over time the bureaucracy will ensure that her name will eventually be forgotten."

"Will they believe you?"

The major was not certain which was the worst fate, execution as a traitor or years of service to the Empire without his family to go home too. "I don't know, I can't disappear with her. As long as I'm in the military, they cannot be anywhere near me; it'll be too risky."

"You could resign your commission."

Adan knew why this man wanted him away from the military. As long as he was within the Imperial ranks, there was much more danger that the Senator's secret could be revealed. "That would have been an option, until a few days ago. I got word of my new assignment."

Bail frowned, "Where?"

"I'm being transferred to the _Devastator_ after the crisis on Imperial Center comes to an end." Word of the new assignment came at the absolute worst time. Even if nothing had happened with his wife, Adan would have not liked the assignment. A tour of duty on a ship meant that he would be separated from his family for a while, and there was a good chance that he would never return.

Within the ranks of the Imperial fleet, an assignment to Vader's flagship was either seen as a chance to build a great career for the brave and stupid. Or, it was viewed as a possible death sentence. The _Devastator_ and its battle group were sent to the most dangerous places in the galaxy. Also, Lord Vader had a habit of executing those who were not up to his standards. A few of Adan's own men had been killed by Vader since the bombing.

"Vader's flagship, why?"

"Apparently, he's impressed with my competency." When dealing with Lord Vader, the best thing to hope for was to be ignored by the Emperor's second-in-command. If an officer was noticed for his incompetence, he was killed. If he was recognized as a great asset, he was promoted to his personal service.

Bail nodded, "If you leave the military it will appear that you're doing so to get out of being in Vader's service."

"You see my problem. That, combined with my wife's disappearance will ensure that I, or anyone close to me, will never be safe. Me being military will make me a much higher class fugitive than Rema."

"I'm sorry." There was nothing more Bail could say.

Adan shook his head, "I don't want your pity; I only want you to keep Rema and Tomas safe after she leaves the planet. Use whatever resources you have, I beg you."

"I give you my word."

"That's all I ask." Adan did not want to think about the future. He wanted to focus on getting his family as far away from him as possible.

The two men made their way to the inner courtyard of the temple. "Here we are, we need to be very quiet from now on. There are soldiers patrolling this area."

"How close?"

Adan looked at his datapad. "Far enough away to be out of their line of sight."

"What about those guards?"

"Leave that to me." Nol punched a few buttons, and the men that were guarding the door suddenly left the area.

"What happened?"

"I sent them a call to assist, seemingly from their colleagues at the edge of the grounds. We have about two minutes to get inside and disable the security system before they return."

"Can the call be traced to you?"

"No, now let me work." He had used a trick that he learned in the academy. He and his friends used to transmit bogus orders and calls to assist as a practical joke many times. Adan decided not tell the senator that doing such a thing in an ultra restricted area such as the Jedi temple was so risky as to be almost suicidal.

It did not take long for Adan to bypass security and open the door. With just seconds to spare before the guards returned to their post, both the major and the senator quickly entered the temple.

"Good work." Bail said breathlessly.

Adan looked at the dark cavernous space in front of him. The only light was from the city lights coming in the windows. "We're not out of this yet, there are several levels of security. Follow closely behind me."

* * *

"The internal alarm that I set up has gone off, we have a visitor." 

Sabé's heart was beating wildly and her nerves were making her feel nauseous. She had been in danger many times while she was in Amidala's service, but all of that paled to what she was going through now.

Typho barely acknowledged her as he worked furiously to try to trace where the temple was breached.

"Could it be the Empire?"

He did not immediately answer, instead he focused on his various devices. Finally, he realized that he was being addressed. "If it is, they are trying their best to sneak through the temple."

"I would imagine that soldiers would not be so subtle." Sabé allowed herself to breathe a momentary sigh of relief; she could deal with anyone but Imperial troops.

The man looked up at the former handmaiden and grabbed her by the arm. "Answer me again, did you tell anyone you were coming here?"

She could see the hate in him; he barely looked like the man she knew all those years ago. "No, I told my family that I had an errand, nothing more."

His grip tightened, "You had better be telling the truth, woman."

"If I'm caught here, I am in just as much trouble. Entering the Jedi temple is punishable by death." Sabé hoped that he was not so far gone to have completely given up reason.

Typho's grip relaxed; he pointed to the terrified child that was waiting for them in the adjoining room. Leia, fearing her kidnapper's wrath, had done exactly as he ordered and not moved while they were in the other room. "Come, take the Sith-spawn, we're moving."

"Sith-spawn?"

"Vader is a Sith Lord, and the girl is his child, " Typho explained as if speaking to a child.

"What is a Sith Lord?" To Sabé, the word Sith seemed vaguely familiar, but she could not place where she had heard it.

"They embrace the Jedi's opposing philosophy, and they have fought each other for many millennia leaving the galaxy destroyed in their wake. The Emperor and Darth Vader are the current incarnation of their order." He stopped and looked at Sabé meaningfully, "And that little girl in there is the heir to that evil."

The former handmaiden could not stand any more. She was not entirely sure that she believed Typho's claims that Leia was Vader's biological daughter, but she was not about to allow the child of her former mistress to be insulted in such a way. "She is Padmé's child, don't you forget that!"

"If she were alive, she would be just as disgusted that she birthed the offspring of that creature."

"Don't you dare say that!" It did not matter to Sabé who Leia's father was, she knew what kind of woman her mother was.

"We don't have time for this." A dangerous look crossed the man's features. "Do what I say or I'll kill the girl, it's that simple."

Knowing that she could not allow herself to be sidetracked from her mission to protect Leia, Sabé decided to acquiesce for the child's sake. She followed Typho to the adjacent room where the girl was waiting and bent down to her.

"Leia, we're going to have to go somewhere else." Sabé hoped that her posture would help the princess be a little less terrified.

The girl looked up, and Sabé could see that the child was nearly overcome by emotion and fatigue. "What happened?"

"There is someone coming."

Leia smiled hopefully, "It may be my father; he's looking for me."

Sabé heard a loud laugh coming from Typho's direction. He came over and also bent down to Leia's level. The former handmaiden cringed when she saw the look on his face. "Listen, little girl, you had better pray that it isn't your father, for your own sake. Believe me when I say, you have no idea what you're wishing for." He smiled and glanced over at Sabé's direction. "Maybe I should tell you."

Leia recoiled in fear, "Please don't hurt me. You promised you wouldn't!"

"That was a promise I made to the Princess of Alderaan. It is no longer valid."

"Typho no!" Sabé's hope that this would resolve peacefully was quickly coming to an end. She needed to keep the princess safe from physical harm and from the harm that would come if Typho told the girl his theory regarding her origins. If it were false, it would do nothing but frighten the child; and if it were somehow true, it would be much worse. "Come Leia, we are in danger. I'll keep you safe."

Typho stood up and addressed the former handmaiden, "Keep it quiet."

Sabé knew that he was referring to Leia. She decided that it was best to do what he said and try to strike back only when the opportunity presented itself. She held Leia's hand as they followed Typho even deeper into the massive structure.

They stopped and Typho took out one of his devices. "How many of them are there?" Asked Sabé.

"Only a few, I think. They have someone with them that knows his way around security systems."

"Are they aware that you detected them?"

Typho shook his head, "I don't know."

"Do you have a visual of them?"

"No, they've done something to the surveillance cameras." Typho sighed in frustration. "My equipment says that they are there, but the Temple's security system does not. Whoever they are, I can't track them."

Sabé looked around at the small room where they had stopped. It would be very easy to get cornered. She wondered, not for the first time that night, how much Typho had thought this through. "What do you plan to do?"

"I plan to shoot them, Handmaiden."

Sabé shook her head, "It's two against one. We may be able to talk our way out of this."

Typho smiled indulgently, "That's very noble, and naïve. I see that pacifist philosophies of Naboo and your adopted homeworld have blinded you to the reality of the galaxy."

"You once held those philosophies."

"I changed with the times. I wonder how many of your loved ones will have to die before you do as well."

Before Sabé had a chance to respond, the room was flooded with bright light. She knew immediately what it was; it was called a luminescent grenade and they worked by emitting a light so intense that it disoriented whoever it was being used against.

The light was so bright that Sabé had to feel for Leia to find her again. Knowing that things were about to get even more dangerous, the former handmaiden dove on the floor and covered the child to protect her.

Over the loud electronic hum of the grenade, Sabé heard a loud male voice. "Typho, drop your weapon and get on the ground!"


	26. Chapter 25

_**Chapter 25:**_

_**--One Hour Earlier**_

Darth Vader had enough of incompetence. The search for Typho was supposed to have been fairly simple and should have been over hours ago; but he had so far not been found.

After Vader had eliminated the most incompetent, the remaining seemed to be more willing to give the extra effort required; but he was still unhappy with their performance. Most of the officers assigned to the task of finding Typho were slow, unsure, and did not think creatively.

The only officer at Station One that was somewhat competent was absent. Hours ago, Major Nol had filed a terse report stating that he was following up on a lead he had uncovered hours ago. Despite all further attempts at communication, no one could contact him on his personal frequency. Comms to his home were also unanswered. If the officer did not have a decent excuse for being unavailable, there would be hell to pay.

The situation with the bombing and the search for Typho had lasted far too long. Vader wanted more resources allocated to the search, but the Emperor at first refused. The Sith apprentice hated chaos, but his master seemed to enjoy it--as long as it suited his purposes.

Of the many things that he hated about Lord Sidious, Vader hated the political games the most. He despised the treachery and phoniness that the Emperor used when dealing with his subjects. He vowed that it would end when he was Emperor.

Vader had decided that one of the first thing he would do after taking his master's place would be to disband the Imperial Senate. His subjects would know that him, and him alone, ruled them. There would be no need for pretending that the Empire's subjects have any say in their future.

Vader longed for the day when he would finally destroy the Emperor. However, until then, he had no choice but to obey him.

Hours ago, he received a message from Palpatine, ordering him to, _"end this now."_ Apparently the chaos caused by the Empire Day bombing no longer suited him; the crisis was no longer useful for his own purposes.

He still could not determine if Sidious had known about the bombing plot all along and allowed it to happen. Sidious certainly did not have any moral qualms against allowing over a hundred thousand deaths. Still, Vader had determined early on in his service that the Emperor was sometimes not as clairvoyant as he claimed to be.

The key was to learn when Sidious truly foresaw something, or when he was bluffing. In his years of service to him, that was something the Sith apprentice still could not determine. It was possible that his master was caught by surprise.

Whatever the reason for his master's way of handling the crisis, Vader was now ordered to end it by whatever means necessary. He was finally given all the resources that he had originally asked for. Every soldier on Imperial Center, except the Imperial Guard, was on the hunt for Typho.

Through the Force, the Sith could feel that the resolution to this situation was coming very soon, but he could not determine what form it would take. Vader was never as attuned to the intricacies of the Force's flow as was his master.

It was just another of the many things Sidious promised to teach him that he never did. Many promises were made that night, very few were kept. In what seemed like many lifetimes ago, Anakin Skywalker submitted himself to the Emperor's teachings in exchange for the power to save Padmé's life--at least that was one of the reasons.

In his years of existing as a Sith, Vader had learned something his younger self failed to grasp on that fateful night when he first bowed his knee to his master. To be powerful enough to wield the power to save a life, many lives had to be destroyed. To be able to save a loved one from death required sacrificing the ability to love.

As he was meditating over these things, the Sith was suddenly cognizant of a nervous presence behind him. "What is it Commander?"

"Lord Vader," the man stuttered, "there's an oddity in the Imperial security network."

"What sort of oddity?"

"It's probably nothing, My Lord, but you made it clear that you wanted us to report anything unusual."

Major Nol's executive officer was fast becoming an annoyance. "Do not tell me what my orders were." Vader finally turned around, "Tell me what you found."

The man swallowed hard, "Yes, My Lord, it appears that one of our security drones sent a few seconds of an alert before switching off."

Vader closed his eyes and searched the Force. It was elusive, but he felt he was closer to the answer he was seeking. "That is unusual?"

"It could be a glitch, but I've never seen one malfunction in this manner."

"You believe it is sabotage?" Vader inquired.

"It is very possible, My Lord. Only someone with a great deal of training could sabotage one of our drones. Considering Typho's background, I believe that he may possess such knowledge."

Vader knew all about Typho's background. He was one of the few that _she_ trusted. In the years since her death, the Sith had considered whether her relationship with her security captain was more than a friendship. He at first dismissed it entirely, but further thought on the matter yielded more questions.

Since the sudden re-appearance of the man, Vader's mind was full of those questions again. At the very least, Typho would know more about his dead wife's relationship with his former master. The Sith was looking forward to getting the answers from him.

"Where was the drone?"

The commander took a deep breath, "The Jedi temple."

This time, Vader did not have to search the Force for the answer. It was now right in front of him. He knew that this was no mere glitch, and that the breach of the Jedi temple was what the Force had been warning him about all night, but he could not understand until now.

"Commander, ready an assault team. I will lead it personally."

"Yes, My Lord." With a sharp salute, the officer moved quickly to obey his orders.

As the soldiers prepared for the engagement, Vader had to do his own preparations. This was not the first time that he had led an assault on the Jedi temple. It had been over eight years since that fateful night when he gave his first sacrifice to the darkness in exchange for unlimited power.

Unlike the night of the temple purge, he would not be backed up by hundreds of clone troopers, there was no need. This was not the last stand of the Jedi, it was only one man; and one broken man could not hope to stand against the might of the Empire, no one could.

* * *

_**--Present Time**_

Bail Organa never realized how huge the Jedi temple was. In the waning days of the Republic, he had been invited many times by various Jedi that he knew. He was honored that he was one of the few senators that the order trusted.

After the rise of the Empire, he never believed he would enter the building again, especially under circumstances such as these. The temple was eerie, the darkness and the many skeletons added up to something that would only be seen in a horror holo.

The two men had to move very slowly and Bail was quickly getting impatient. He wanted to see his daughter again more than anything. He hoped with everything in him that they were not too late, and that he could convince Typho to let her go.

As they got closer to their destination, Bail noticed Nol continuing to stare at his equipment. By the look on his face, something was greatly troubling him.

"Is there a problem?"

Adan did not look up; instead he continued to examine his equipment. "I'm getting some strange readings."

Bail stopped walking immediately, "What sort of readings?"

Nol's only answer was a mumbled curse before a fairly large crash was heard coming from somewhere in the temple.

The senator's heart began to beat even faster. "What was that?"

Nol looked up and his eyes finally met his companion's. The fear he saw in the Major's eyes was enough to send shivers down his spine. He appeared to be fighting for control over his emotions as he spoke what he knew out loud, "There are stormtroopers in the temple."

Bail's heart felt as if it fell to his stomach. "What!"

The fear then seemed to leave the other man's eyes. It was replaced by an almost unnerving calmness. The senator understood that he was now seeing Major Nol in battle mode.

"You need to get out of here, now."

Bail shook his head firmly, "I can't leave Leia."

"They've already engaged Typho, there's nothing you can do."

The even tone of the major's voice was also very disconcerting. In the space of twenty seconds, Bail Organa watched as the major became a different man.

"No!" This was one of Bail Organa's greatest fears. He went into an agreement with an Imperial officer just to keep Leia safe from this very scenario. It was now all for nothing.

In desperation, the senator began to run toward the sound of the crash but was stopped by Nol's strong arm.

"Think for a moment, if you're caught here, what will you say? You will expose all of us."

"You actually expect me to leave her?" He shouted.

Adan nodded, "That is exactly what I expect you to do. I'll take you to another exit, and you'll have to find your own way back to the Senate Complex."

Even in his distress, Bail caught that Nol expected him to go alone. "What will you do?"

He took a deep breath, "I promise you Senator, I'll do what I can to keep your daughter safe; but we need to hurry." He then grabbed the other man's arm and began walking toward the exit.

Feeling himself being dragged, Bail backed away from the major and refused to move. "I can't go."

"Tell me, how will you explain your presence here?" Nol challenged. "How are you helping your daughter by being executed? Because, that is exactly what will happen if you are found in this building. The Emperor will not care that you are a Senator."

The thought of leaving Leia in the hands of the Empire was unthinkable. However, Bail knew that his companion was right. He would not be able to explain his presence, and he would be executed. There was absolutely nothing that he could do to help her. The only hoped lied in someone who once gave an oath to serve the Emperor above all.

He looked over at the waiting officer, "I'm putting my daughter's life in your hands."

With almost frightening intensity in his eyes, Nol answered, "I made a promise; I'll do everything in my power to bring her home to you."

"I will hold you to it, Major."

Without another word, the two men quickly made their way to another access point of the temple.

"This is one of the auxiliary entrances to the temple, I've disabled security. According to my information, if you continue down this corridor, you will eventually come out somewhere in the undercity near the governmental complex."

"How do you know that disabling security has worked?" Bail asked. "The temple is filled with Stormtroopers."

"If security is active in this part of the building, we would have been met by now."

"You don't think we were the ones to set off the alarms?"

Adan shook his head, "No, I suspect Vader's presence inspired my executive officer to become more astute than he usually he. They must have picked up the same anomaly I did."

"What are you going to do?"

"I have a few tricks, just leave that to me."

Bail did not like being in the dark, but he knew there was no time for explanations. "I am leaving a great deal to you," the senator reminded.

Nol pointed down the corridor. "Go back to your consulate; I'll be in touch soon."

Bail Organa had no choice but to obey.

* * *

Sabé had been in many dangerous situations in her past. The worst was during the droid army invasion of Naboo. She was serving as decoy to Queen Amidala, the most dangerous position of the entire security team. The handmaiden was not afraid, but was honored to be given the opportunity to serve her queen and her people in such a manner. 

In her entire time as a handmaiden, she had never been afraid. She trusted in the strength of her convictions and from a belief that light will always win over darkness.

Time had proven that her beliefs were childish and naïve; nothing could stop darkness. It was in the heart of the galaxy itself, and in its rulers.

Sabé was now very afraid.

The luminescent grenade had finally disbursed but she continued to cover Leia with her own body. She heard, rather than saw, the stormtroopers enter the room. The sound of dozens of heavy boots echoed in the chamber.

"Get on the ground, now!" One of the officers yelled again, but Sabé could see that Typho was not obeying the order. He had recovered from the grenade and was standing with a blaster pointed at the officer.

Still holding on to Leia, Sabé allowed her to sit up and they both moved further into the corner of the room with Typho still standing in front of them.

Leia was crying and shaking from the fear, but was bravely trying to remain as quiet as possible. Sabé embraced the trembling girl hoping to calm her.

The sound that came next was far worse than stormtrooper boots or their weapons. Leia tensed even more when the sound of deep electronic breathing and even louder footfalls came toward them. Lord Vader had arrived.

Typho turned toward where Sabé and Leia were; and in a flash, he struck the former handmaiden hard, and grabbed Leia from her.

Sabé had to fight to keep conscious. The side of her face felt as if it were on fire with pain. However, the physical pain was nothing compared to the pain of seeing Leia held with a blaster at her head.

Vader entered the room, "Drop your weapon."

Typho backed away from him, still holding the terrified princess. "I'm not letting you take me alive, Vader."

At first, Sabé wondered why the soldiers did not just begin shooting before he grabbed Leia. However, it now made sense, the Empire wanted Typho alive to extract information regarding any co-conspirators that might have helped him with the bombing.

"Get any closer and the little girl gets it." Typho warned.

Without showing any inclination of backing down, Vader pressed forward. "The Empire does not negotiate with those who take hostages."

"She's not just any hostage, and you know it." Typho then smiled, "Actually, perhaps you don't know."

Sabé knew what he was implying. While she did not want to believe what Typho had told her about Vader being Leia's biological father, the former handmaiden could not allow it to be known if it were true. "No!"

"Shut up handmaiden!"

Trying to not be noticed, Sabé reached behind her. During her service to Queen Amidala, she had been issued a tiny blaster that could be easily hidden. As an afterthought, she had decided to bring it with her while she was preparing to go to the temple.

During her initial capture by Typho, he had taken her main blaster but had not thought to search for something so small. It was not very powerful and only had enough energy for one shot, but it would have to do. She could not allow him to tell Vader what he suspected. If it were true, Leia would be damned.

"I will not ask you again, drop your weapon."

Typho laughed, "If you knew who this little girl really was, you wouldn't be so cavalier in regards to her safety."

"Please, don't do this." One more time, Sabé felt the need to warn him. She hoped he would listen to reason.

He did not.

"Perhaps I should tell you, Vader. It would be a wonderful reunion."

Knowing that she would most likely never see them again, Sabé breathed a prayer to the goddess for her children's protection. Then, with no other choice in the matter, the former handmaiden pulled out the blaster and fired.

Almost immediately, she was fired upon by Imperial troops. Feeling the blaster bolts hit her hurt greatly but still less than she expected. As consciousness waned and darkness waxed, Sabé's last view was of Typho falling to ground and Leia being grabbed by a stormtrooper.

As she laid on the ground of the Jedi Temple, the last thing she heard was the voice of Lord Vader. "Secure that woman."

"I'm sorry Leia, I failed you. I failed you."

Darkness had claimed yet another prize.

* * *

After seeing Senator Organa off, Adan had also left the temple, but did not stray far. He knew that he had to somehow get back in, but in an official capacity. 

Switching on his communicator, he was not surprised to see that he had been sent several messages. He knew that he would have to be at his rhetorical best to talk his way out this.

Almost immediately after he turned his communicator back on, he was not surprised that another comm was trying to get through, it was from his executive officer.

Doing his best to hide his nervousness, he answered. "Nol here."

_"Sir, we've been trying to get hold of you all night."_

Taking on a clipped military tone, he gave the best explanation he could think of. "I've been in a communications dead zone most of the night; I thought I had a lead."

In some ways, he was telling the truth. Adan felt that telling as much of the truth as possible would be more successful than creating an outright lie. There would be plenty of time for those.

_"Lord Vader has been searching for you."_

Through his communicator, Nol could hear the commander's nervousness. He was the one who had to explain to Lord Vader all night why they had not been able to get hold of the major. He sympathized, but not much; Adan had much greater problems than his executive officer did at the moment. "I will explain my actions to him. Where is he?"

_"We've found Typho in the Jedi Temple, of all places. Lord Vader wants you to join him there."_

"I copy, Commander. I am not far from that sector." Another truth, he was only meters away.

Switching off his communicator, Major Nol waited what seemed to be an appropriate time period before making his presence known.

He came through the entrance checkpoints and made his way to Vader's location. When he entered the room, he saw that Typho had been shot, but it appeared that he was still alive but unconscious. The Organa princess was huddled in a corner of the room. Other than a tear-stained face, she did not seem to have been hurt.

There was another in the room that he did not expect. The body of a woman whom he had never seen before was being covered and prepared for transport.

With the utmost military formality, Nol came up to his superior and saluted. "Lord Vader, you sent for me."

"Major, I will need an explanation as to why you have been out of communication for several hours."

"I was following a lead in a comm dead zone near the Works."

Vader was silent for a few moments as the Imperial second-in-command appeared to be deciding whether or not to believe him. Adan did not try to hide his nervousness, there would be no point. His only hope was that Lord Vader would perceive his anxiety to be a product of a superior's questioning and not caused by his treason.

"We will discuss this at a later time." Vader then pointed to the unconscious Typho, "He is to be taken to a military medical center, under constant guard."

Adan's original plan, one he did not share with Senator Organa, was to kill Typho to keep from him revealing his wife's small involvement. However, none of his plans had worked right that night. He hoped that he could get Rema off the planet before Typho's interrogation.

"Yes, My Lord." Nol then indicated the now covered body. "Who was this woman?"

"It appears she was an accessory." Vader paused, as if he did not believe it himself. "Her full involvement will be determined by Typho's interrogation."

At the mention of his interrogation, it was all Adan could do to not wince at the reminder. "Yes, My Lord. What about the girl?"

"She is to be taken to Station One for questioning."

"Yes, My Lord."


	27. Chapter 26

_**Chapter 26:**_

The perpetrator of the terrorist act that threatened the New Order was now in custody, the case was solved, and Typho would soon pay the ultimate penalty for his crimes against the Empire. As soon as he was released from the medical center, the former captain of royal security of Naboo would undergo several days of interrogation where his co-conspirators would be discovered.

Everything should have been right, but Darth Vader could still feel something was very wrong. He was not certain of the cause, but much of what had happened in the last several hours did not add up.

He still did not know why the former handmaiden was with Typho in the remains of the Jedi temple. He could not imagine one such as her being involved in something as messy as terrorism. Sabé Komour was once one of _her_ most trusted companions--a handmaiden, her most loyal bodyguard.

Typho too was also once trusted by her, but since the discovery of his involvement in the bombing, much had been learned about the man. Two years ago his wife had been executed on Quellor. Vader remembered the incident well; he was the one who ordered it done; but he had no idea who she was connected to. Even if he did, it still would not have mattered to the Sith.

After her death, Typho apparently was so driven by revenge that he spent the last two years traveling the galaxy obsessed with finding ways to exact his vengeance. In that time, he had become acquainted with the terrorist group, _Soldiers of the Republic_. Since the bombing, Imperial agents all over the galaxy had been searching for members of the group with very little success.

Even though he was the target of the former captain's rage, Vader understood why the man did it; he certainly understood the burning desire for revenge. Still, the fact that the Sith understood why he did it would not save Typho from Vader's justice.

While Typho's motive was known, nothing could seemingly explain why Padmé's former handmaiden was with him in the temple. Nothing in her history could explain why she would be involved with terrorism. From all accounts, she had lived a very quiet life since her retirement from service after Queen Amidala's reign ended.

Also, he did not understand why she would try to kill Typho after stormtroopers arrived. Vader had meditated on this most puzzling enigma, but no answers had come. Until the interrogation, he would have to wait for the answer that he needed.

There was a possibility that Princess Leia knew something. After the incident at the temple, he had ordered her to be taken back to Station One for questioning.

In the hours since her arrival, she had been medically examined and officially placed in protective custody. Vader noted that Major Nol had not put her in a cell and had even moved a cot in the conference room for the child to sleep on.

Pausing outside the door, the Sith reached out with the Force to the princess. She was asleep, but it was not a peaceful slumber. In her dreams, her mind was replaying the scene of the handmaiden being killed by stormtrooper fire.

Reaching deeper, he could feel the girl's grief but mostly he felt anger. Since she was not awake, she could not suppress her emotions as she had no doubt been taught.

Vader thought about his future plans and the possibility that he had entertained of taking the girl as his apprentice someday. There was no doubt that the girl was powerful and she had great potential. If the Jedi were still around she would have been taken as a child to the temple. However, fate had placed her into the home of Bail Organa.

He wondered again if the senator had any idea what raw power he had under his own roof. Vader suspected that he did not, not to the extent that the Sith did. The child would need to be watched closely.

However, until she came of age, she would be useless to him. Putting his future plans in the back of his mind, Vader focused on the present. He needed to discover what the princess knew.

Leia awoke immediately when Vader entered the room. Gasping in sudden fright, Leia scrambled to sit up. "Where is my father?"

The door closed and Vader slowly approached the girl. "You will see him after you have answered my questions."

The princess closed her eyes, "Please, just go away."

"Have you ever met Typho before this incident?"

The mention of her kidnapper made the girl even more frightened. "No, I've never seen him before."

"Are you certain?"

"Yes."

"Did you ever hear your parents mention his name?" From what had been turned up about Typho's activities during the last eight years, there was no evidence that he had been in contact with the Organas, but Vader wanted to make sure that no stone was left unturned.

"No."

It was as he expected. Carefully noting her reaction, the Sith changed the subject. "Did you know Sabé Komour?"

Through the Force, Vader felt the child's sudden reaction to the name. Her previous fear of him was nearly washed away completely by a fresh infusion of grief and anger. He knew she was reliving the moment the woman was killed. "I met her at the consulate; she was so nice to me."

"Why was she with Typho?"

The princess wiped the tears from her eyes, "I don't know, she said that she came to protect me."

"How did she know where to find you?"

Leia shook her head, "She didn't say."

"What did she and Typho speak of?"

"I don't know," she sobbed. "They went in a room and I couldn't hear them."

Lord Vader knew then that further questioning was pointless; the girl knew nothing. He would have to get his answers from Typho himself.

Turning to leave the room, he was stopped by the princess' question, "Where is my father? I want to go home. Please let me go."

"He will come for you shortly." Vader turned around, he sensed that the girl had more on her mind; there was more she wanted to say. Intrigued, the Sith waited for her to find the courage. He did not have to wait long.

"Did you really kill all those in the temple?"

He was surprised by the question, but he did not show it. Vader gave the same answer that he himself was given by Lord Sidious after he was charged with the mission of destroying the Jedi order all those years ago. "Traitors must be eliminated without mercy."

Vader then paused as the memories of the first night of the purge washed over him. "It is something you will someday understand."

* * *

Bail Organa did not expect news to come quickly regarding what happened inside the temple. He knew enough about Imperial procedure to know that news was released to the public only after it had been parsed thoroughly by officials within the government and military.

Even though he knew this, and expected news of Leia's welfare to reach him very slowly, it still did not lessen the father's anguish over not knowing if his daughter was alive or dead.

When he returned to the Alderaanian Consulate the rays of dawn were just beginning to be seen over the capital's governmental complex. He went directly to his office and told his staff that he was not to be disturbed. With his daughter's life in the hands of an Imperial officer that he barely knew, the senator did not think that he could handle much else.

Not for the first time, Bail mentally berated himself for trusting Adan Nol. He could not make himself fully believe that leaving the temple without her was the right thing to do. His mind believed it was the right thing; he would have been either killed on sight if he was discovered, or he would have been arrested only to be executed later.

However, his heart refused to be convinced. The senator had never been one to second guess decisions once they had been made, but there was much more at stake than politics. His little girl's life was on the line.

About only one hour of waiting, Bail began attempting to get hold of someone at Station One to get an update, but so far no one there would speak with him. As the hours passed, his panic grew. At one point he even entertained the idea of contacting Vader's flagship, but the senator's good sense ultimately prevailed against that insane notion.

Almost six hours after he left the Jedi temple, Bail was finally contacted on his private channel by Major Nol. "I have been waiting for hours. Where have you been?"

"I apologize, there was much that needed to be done. Your daughter is alive, and apart from a few bumps and bruises, she is uninjured."

Bail closed his eyes as relief washed over him. In all of his life, he never thought that he had heard anything so wonderful. "Where is she now?"

Adan hesitated for a few moments before answering, "She is at Station One being questioned."

The relief he was experiencing suddenly began being replaced by the panic he had felt earlier. "Why? What could she possibly know?"

"She is safe, Senator. It isn't an interrogation; we just want to know if Typho told her anything."

Even though Adan was trying to reassure him, his voice was very hesitant. Through the simple audio-only communication, Bail could hear an edge to his voice. "What is it you're not telling me? Who is doing the questioning?"

The senator heard a sigh coming from the other end of the communication, "Lord Vader is questioning her."

Bail felt as if his heart was being ripped. Leia had already endured a one-on-one questioning with Vader, and the experience terrified her so much that she had nightmares for days.

"I'm sorry Senator, I would have done the questioning myself but Lord Vader insisted."

"I know, it isn't your fault."

"They'll be contacting you soon to come pick her up," Nol reported in his most reassuring voice possible given the circumstances.

Bail knew that he should be grateful that Leia was even alive; but the thought of Vader once again in close proximity to her was almost more than he could take. Taking a deep breath, he attempted to let go of his panic so he could think clearly.

"There is something else; a woman not known to be connected with the bombings was found at the scene. However, she is connected to the Alderaanian consulate."

Questions swirled through his mind, "Who is it?"

"Her name was Sabé Komour. Isn't she the wife of your ambassador?"

To say that Bail was surprised was an understatement. The former handmaiden of Senator Amidala had been far too close to Leia for his liking since she arrived on Coruscant. The coincidences were beginning to pile up. Both she and Typho were once in the service of Senator Amidala. Bail did not want to think that Sabé was in collusion with Typho, but he could not ignore that possibility.

"Do you have any idea why she might have been in the temple?" Asked Nol.

"I don't know." He truly had no idea--definitely nothing in the way of real facts.

"She shielded the princess during the initial assault. If it were not for her, your daughter might not have survived."

"She died protecting Leia?"

"Not exactly," Adan reported. "She was armed with a small blaster and used it on Typho. The stormtroopers fired to stop her; that is what killed her."

With all that had happened recently, Bail did not know what to think of the news. He grieved for Jorran Komour, her husband and was more than grateful that she was there to shield Leia from the assault; but he still could not understand why she would even be anywhere near the temple. "Typho is dead as well?"

"No, he's in a medical center under guard. He'll be out of surgery soon."

"Then we need to move fast to get your family off-planet."

"We will discuss this later." Nol paused, as if he was trying to choose his words carefully. "We do have some time."

"What do you mean? As long as Typho is alive your wife is in danger on Coruscant."

"I know, I will contact you soon."

* * *

Typho perceived very little after he was shot. He remembered Vader's robotic voice as he barked out commands to the stormtroopers and the sound of blaster fire released in a vain attempt to stop Sabé; but they were too late.

Afterward things became even fuzzier. He remembered hearing the voices of medics as they worked on him. From their nervous tone, Typho got the impression that their future depended on his survival; at least until Vader got the information he wanted.

The last thing he remembered before waking up in the sterile Imperial medical ward was being wheeled to surgery. From the smell that greeted him when he awoke, he could tell that he had also been treated in a Bacta tank. The Empire spared no expense to save his life; they wanted to kill him themselves.

Even through the leftover mental fog caused by the surgical sedative, he could barely make out the figure of a man seated next to him. It took a few moments for him to wake up enough to realize that the man was wearing the uniform of an Imperial officer. "I expected Vader himself, not one of his lackeys."

The man shrugged, "He will see you soon enough."

"Where am I?"

"Medical Center J-293, you just came out of surgery."

Typho chuckled bitterly, "You want me nice and patched up before the torture begins?"

"The Empire will demand its justice," the man replied with no emotion.

The Empire knows nothing of justice."

For the first time since the beginning of the conversation, the man's blank expression faltered momentarily. "That is a very interesting statement coming from one who murdered several thousand civilians."

"How many civilians have you murdered? Oh wait, it's not murder if it's in the line of duty. Do forgive me, I keep forgetting that." Typho expected the officer to rise up and declare the Empire and himself innocent, but he did not. The man just continued to stare at him.

Both men were silent for a few moments, until Typho could stand it no longer. "Is Sabé still alive?" He knew why she shot him. It had nothing to do with any physical danger that the Leia Organa was in; but it was because she feared he would reveal what he knew about the girl's parentage.

"Lady Komour was killed."

Typho could not help but be somewhat amused. Her foolish action against him not only cost the handmaiden her life; but it did not silence him permanently as she had no doubt hoped. Her death was meaningless.

The officer continued his questioning. "Did she have anything to do with the attack?"

"I'll give you this one, Imperial. No, she didn't; she was just a blind fool."

"Why was she there?"

"To protect the little girl from me," Typho grinned. "Tell me, did the girl survive?"

"Yes."

"I'm sure Vader will be thrilled."

The officer frowned, "What do you mean?"

Typho shook his head, "No, I'm saving that one for the Dark Lord himself." He wanted Vader to know that his own child was in his grasp. There was little that he could do now against the Sith; this was all the vengeance that was left.

The strange officer bent forward in his seat until his face was just inches from his ear. "Aren't you going to ask me who I am?"

"I don't care."

He spoke quietly, but with an intensity that he had not yet shown. "My name is Major Adan Nol."

Realization came to Typho quickly, "You're Rema's husband?"

Nol's demeanor immediately changed at the mention of his wife's name. The hate in his eyes was apparent. "Yes, I'm here on her behalf."

"We're not having an affair, if that is what you're concerned with."

"No, but your connection to her will make her life worth nothing if it is revealed."

Typho had been in danger of some kind for most of his life. He had faced assassins, stormtroopers, and killed countless thousands and barely batted an eye; but for just a moment, as the other man leaned into his face, he was afraid. He had seen the expression that Nol had on his face before; he saw it on his own face when he looked in the mirror. Typho knew it well; it was hate.

Quickly masking his unease, he laughed, "I'm not concerned about that." Typho looked away for a moment; and for the first time since he had awoken, noticed that his limbs could not move. He wondered if it was the medication or a complication from his injury.

Nol leaned back into his chair and his expression was once more blank. "I know that. I cannot allow that connection to be revealed."

"I don't believe this, you are here to beg me not to tell Vader about your wife?" Typho again attempted to move, but nothing would happen. However, he refused to show his growing concern to the Imperial before him.

"No, that won't be possible."

All the sudden, he noticed his tongue was parched and his throat was incredibly dry. "Then why are you here?"

Seeing his increased difficulty, a smile spread across Nol's face. "Are you thirsty, Typho?"

"What's going on?" Speaking was becoming nearly impossible. When he felt a painful constriction in his chest, Typho knew immediately what was wrong with him.

"It seems that the medical droid assigned to you was programmed to give you the wrong set of injections."

"How did..." He had been poisoned with Eracept, a chemical commonly used by assassins and bounty hunters. It was nearly untraceable and just a small amount was necessary to cause the death of most sentients within an hour.

He had planned the Coruscant operation down to the last possible variable; but nothing had gone the way it was supposed to have gone. Still, even with everything that had gone wrong, he never thought that his end would be this: writhing in pain on a hospital bed with the only witness being an unimportant Imperial officer.

"Don't try to speak, it will probably become quite painful for you soon."

Nol again leaned in close to the dying man and whispered, "You are probably wondering how this was done. There's a bounty hunter on Imperial Center that was hired by some of your former associates. You see, they don't want you to expose their activities. Very soon, the body of that bounty hunter will be found nearby, and the evidence against him will be damning."

"You did..." Typho tried to choke the words out but he could not manage it. He then looked up at the monitors. He figured someone should be seeing this.

The officer smiled when he realized what the other man was thinking. "Oh, the monitors have been disabled--by the bounty hunter, I'm sure. No one will see you die, except me."

Words were not longer possible, it was all he could do to breathe; but eventually that became impossible. Not able to move and suffocating, the last thing that Typho heard before death was Nol's declaration, "You're not the first man I've killed, Typho; and to protect those I love, most likely not the last."

* * *

It had been several hours since Adan had last seen his wife. After all that had happened, he wanted to spend what little time he had left with them. Even though Typho was dead, he could not allow the ones that he loved the most to remain with him. For their sakes, he had to let them go.

Adan was painfully aware that a very difficult conversation was ahead of him. He knew Rema enough to know that she would not be very open to the idea of leaving him, even if it was for her own protection. However, that conversation could be put off for a few hours, now he just wanted to be with his family.

Entering his home, he was greeted by the sight of his wife and son sleeping on the couch together. It appeared that Rema had fallen asleep while holding their son. Carefully making his way to where they were lying, Adan picked up his sleeping child. He barely stirred as his father carried him to his bed.

For a few moments, Adan watched Tomas sleep knowing that he had so little time left with him. He was going down a road that his family could not follow. He hoped that someday his son would forgive him and understand why he had to send them away.

Reluctantly, he left his son's room to return to his sleeping wife. Adan crouched down next to her and caressed her face--memorizing the feel of her skin.

Startled, Rema awoke suddenly. "Adan, you're home." She then began looking around the room frantically, "Where is Tomas?"

"He was asleep, I carried him to bed." Adan understood why she was nervous to see him; but he was especially pained to see the terror in her eyes. He wondered if she somehow knew what was coming, and if she knew what he had done. Adan Nol had just killed two men in cold blood, Typo and the bounty hunter he set up to take the fall for the killing. He wondered if Rema could see it in his eyes.

"He had a late night." She sat up but kept her eyes firm on her husband. "Where have you been?"

From the ill-fated, and possibly completely insane, rescue attempt with Senator Organa to his killing of Typho, the memories came rushing back. Of all the things that he had seen and done in his military career, Adan knew that the memory of watching a man suffocate to death would be something that would never leave him. "It's probably best that you don't know."

Rema took her husband's hand, "Tell me, please. What have you done?"

"I've made a choice."

She closed her eyes and nodded. "You are a good man, I'm sure it wasn't easy for you." Adan could see clearly that she was doing everything in her power to not break down in tears.

"It was the only choice I could make."

Rema stood from the couch and turned her back to her husband, "Do me a favor. Please get Tomas out of here before... I don't want him to have to see it."

"See what?"

"When they come for me--I don't think it'll be good for him to see his mother being taken away."

"Rema, what are you talking about?" Adan stood up and turned her around to face him.

Her voice quivered as she answered, "You...you are going to turn me in. I am afraid, but it will probably be the best thing for Tomas. I don't want him taken from you."

Adan sighed and shook his head. "Did you honestly think that I would do such a thing?"

Rema looked at him with a mixture of shock and relief, "I thought that..."

"You thought wrong, Rema!" Adan then realized that she had every reason to think that he would turn her in. He nearly shuddered as he remembered how he treated her and the things that he said when she told him what had happened.

"What are we going to do, then? What if they find out? They will kill you," she cried.

Adan placed a finger to his wife's lips, "You are to not worry about that."

"I will worry about it!"

Like he had done in times past to comfort her, he drew Rema into his arms. "Can you please just trust me?"

She began shaking with sobs, and for several moments they held each other. Finally, Rema broke the silence, "I trust you with my life and the life of our son."

"I love you so much." Adan's own tears began to fall. While it would be very soon that he would have to tell her his plan, but he did not want to spoil this moment. For just a little while longer, they could be husband and wife.


	28. Chapter 27

_**Chapter 27:**_

It was later than usual when Rema awoke to an empty bed. The fact that her husband was not there did not surprise her; Adan usually was off to work long before the sun appeared over the horizon. However, after all that had happened, she felt his loss even more. There were very few words uttered the night before. Adan only told her that he had chosen her over the Empire and that he would make certain she and Tomas would be safe. The rest of the night was spent in her husband's arms.

Something had happened to her husband; that much she knew. In his intimate embrace he almost seemed like a different man. She did not know what had happened in those long hours she was apart from him and a part of her did not want to know. For years her greatest fear was that the Empire would change him, she did not think she could ever forgive herself if his transformation was brought on by her actions.

Rema closed her eyes as the memory of her last encounter with Typho washed over her. She wished she could go back and reverse what she had done. She knew she should have refused to help Typho. If she had it to do all over again she would have happily turned that monster in like a good citizen of the Empire should have done. If it meant that her husband would have been spared the burden he now carries, she could have pretended to be a dutiful subject of the Emperor.

Sunshine was making the room brighter and brighter every moment she laid in bed. There was nothing Rema wanted to do more than shut the curtains and sleep longer. She did not think that she had enough strength to face the day, but she had a duty to care for her precious son who would be waking any moment.

Rema wearily got up from her bed and quickly dressed into the first frock she grabbed out of her closet. Before she left the bedroom, she stopped at the HoloNet viewer. Even though she knew that what was officially reported to the news agencies was never the complete truth, Rema wondered if there would be anything reported this morning that would shed light on what happened the night before-something that would explain the changes that had come over her husband.

Switching on the viewer, the first thing she saw was a holo of Typho's face. Turning up the volume, she caught the end of a report:

_"Officials within the Imperial government have confirmed that the fugitive was pronounced dead five hours ago after what appears to be an assassination attempt. The official we spoke to refused to speculate on who was responsible for the killing but an unnamed source indicated that the terrorist organization Typho was associated with was involved. A second corpse was discovered that was linked to Soldiers of the Republic, possibly a bounty hunter. We will continue to keep an eye on this story and give more information as it is released. In related news, the Emperor has scheduled an address later today..."_

Rema abruptly turned off the HoloNet viewer; she had learned all she needed to know. She could not deny that she was relieved that Typho was dead. Hopefully, the knowledge of her association with him died with him as well, but something about his death nagged at her. She remembered how Adan had acted when he came home just hours ago. A change had come over him. Rema suddenly felt sick to her stomach.

She then heard what sounded like her son's voice coming from the kitchen. Curiously, she opened her bedroom door and was even more surprised to hear her husband's voice as well. This was most unusual; it made the knot in the pit of Rema's stomach grow larger.

She walked slowly to the kitchen and was greeted by the sight of Adan preparing breakfast with Tomas. "Good morning," she greeted hesitantly.

Adan looked up from the food processing unit and smiled, "Good morning, I made breakfast."

"Don't you have to be on duty?" Rema knew Imperial protocol dictated that an officer was to never miss a duty shift, especially with the second-in-command of the Empire breathing down your neck.

Adan's smile disappeared, "Lord Vader will be on his flagship for the next several hours. I wanted to spend some time with you and Tomas."

"I helped daddy cook," Tomas announced with his usual enthusiasm.

Despite her uneasiness, Rema made an effort to appear happy and untroubled for the sake of their young child. "I can see that; it looks delicious." Rema then turned to her son, "Tomas, go play in your room for a few minutes."

Even though he was disappointed at having to be banished, the child obeyed without complaining. After Tomas was out of earshot, Rema spoke up, "You're going to have to tell me sooner or later."

"Rema, I..."

"In all the years I've known you, you've never missed a day of work-even the day after our son's birth. What is going on?" Everything about her husband's behavior was unusual and it was making her even more uneasy.

A part of her did not want to have this conversation. She wanted to leave it alone. Rema suspected that she did not want to know the true reason for her husband's transformation; but she had been taught to never shy away from the truth, no matter how unpleasant. "I just looked at the news feed from HoloNet, Typho is dead. He died in custody."

"I know," Adan answered with little emotion. This was a side of her husband that Rema had seen very few times. She could clearly see the Empire reflected in his cold and robotic demeanor.

"They said that a bounty hunter hired by his former associates was most likely the culprit; he is dead as well."

"I know," He answered again without flinching.

A sob caught in Rema's throat as she voiced the conclusion that she feared was true the second she learned of Typho's death. "The bounty hunter didn't kill him, you did."

Without looking away from his wife's unyielding gaze, he answered, "Yes."

"You then murdered the bounty hunter to frame him for the killing." Rema suddenly wanted to be anywhere but in her small apartment's kitchen discussing this subject. To the young woman, an audience with Vader himself would have been almost preferable.

"Yes."

With the confirmation of her worst fear, Rema sunk down in a chair and her tears began to fall. "Just how much blood is on your hands?"

Adan flinched at the question; it was the first time that his emotionless Imperial demeanor cracked in the slightest. "I did it to save you."

Rema shook her head, "You murdered in my name?"

Adan took a chair, sat down in front of Rema, and grabbed her hands. He looked directly in her eyes as he spoke. "I'm not going to try to justify this, and I'm not going to apologize. His death was necessary to save you and our son; and if I had it to do all over again, I would do it again and again."

Rema closed her eyes, she could no longer bear Adan's gaze. Her stomach twisted and she felt sick. "I'm so sorry," She whispered. "It was my fault."

"No, it wasn't."

There was nothing her husband, or anyone, could say that would make her feel less responsible. "If I didn't help Typho you would not have had to do such a thing."

"Listen to me," Adan ordered in the same tone she imagined he used while on duty. "It wasn't your fault." He then stopped for a moment and spoke more gently, "Please don't bear this burden."

"What happens now?"

"That's what I need to talk to you about. It isn't safe for you and Tomas on Imperial Center."

"I thought our safety was the reason you killed Typho." Rema was confused and could barely believe she was having such a conversation. She felt that nothing made sense anymore.

Adan nodded, "There is still a possibility that your connection will be revealed. It's a chance I don't want to take."

"You're sending us away?" She could barely believe what she was hearing. Rema hoped that this was some nightmare and she would be waking up soon.

"Yes, there is someone that I trust, he will help you. You are to stay in hiding." Adan was resolute; his wife could see in his steely eyes that there would be no talking him out of his decision.

"For how long?"

"For as long as the danger exists."

"How long will that be?" Rema demanded.

For the first time since their conversation began, Adan broke eye contact with his wife and looked away as he answered. "I don't know."

In the years that she had known him, Rema learned how to read her husband's body language. She could tell there was something else-something he was trying to spare her from. "There's something else you are not telling me."

"I received new orders."

"You are being transferred from the capital? Where are they sending you?"

Adan again momentarily looked away, "The _Devastator_."

Rema suddenly was even more terrified. "That's Vader's ship!" Being the wife of an Imperial officer, she had heard more about the second-in-command of the Empire than most civilians. She had heard other officers' wives speak about their husband's encounters with the masked creature. Even if only a small fraction of the rumors she had heard about Vader were true, Rema would still be afraid beyond belief.

Adan nodded, "Yes."

"You can't go on his ship!"

Adan reached out to take his wife's hand. "I don't have a choice."

"Resign your commission!" Rema demanded.

In contrast to his wife's heightened emotions, Adan remained calm and steady. "I cannot."

Rema took a deep breath in an attempt to calm down. She knew getting belligerent would not help the situation. "How long is your tour of duty?"

"Standard, three years; but it will probably be extended."

The fact that his tour of duty could be extended was not Rema's fear; her fear was that it would be drastically shortened. She had heard the stories about how Vader dealt with officers who displeased him in some manner. For the sake of her family, and her own sanity, Rema decided to try to make the best of it. "After time passes and the danger of my connection with Typho being discovered passes, you will be able to take leave and come see us. It may not be so bad."

Adan rose from his chair, "Pack a bag for you and Tomas. When you get to where you are going, you can get more things."

"Already? Adan, the travel restrictions haven't been removed." Ever since the attack civilian travel to and from the capital had been stopped. Only military and approved civilian ships were allowed passage. Every ship without authorization that tried to enter or leave orbit was destroyed.

He smiled, "Don't worry about that."

"When are we leaving?" Despite her fears and her many questions, Rema decided she would trust Adan and agree to his plan.

"Very soon."

"Typho is dead."

Bail Organa stared at the man across his desk who knew most of his deepest secrets. So far, Adan Nol had fulfilled his end of the bargain; but the mysterious death of Typho in Imperial custody was a harsh reminder of who he was truly dealing with.

Nol did not flinch from the senator's icy glare. He was used to dealing with far worse to be intimidated by the Alderaanian. "Yes."

"You killed him, didn't you?" When Bail heard the news, he knew exactly who was responsible. There was no one else close enough to him with the motive. Typho's betrayed comrades were no match for Imperial security; they would not have been able to hire an assassin good enough to get close. Vader would not have had him killed before every last scrap of information was extracted from him by interrogation. The only one left that had enough access, and the motivation, was Major Adan Nol.

"Yes I did." He answered in the chilling, matter-of-fact tone that Bail was used to hearing from Imperial officers. The senator searched the man's eyes and found not a trace of remorse.

"Because of your wife?" Typho held the secret of Rema Nol's collusion, and Nol had said he would do anything to protect her.

"Senator, what would you have done in my place?"

"You killed him in cold blood in his hospital bed." Bail could almost see the logic behind Nol's actions, even if his actions were reprehensible to him. He prayed that he would never have to make such a choice.

"Typho kidnapped your daughter and your ambassador's wife is dead because of him; yet you lecture me about killing him?" Nol shook his head incredulously. "I'm sure the husband of the woman who was killed isn't feeling this charitable today. I assume he knows what happened."

"He knows, so do their children," Bail answered softly. He had just left the home of Jorran Komour. As senator, he felt it was his duty to be the one to inform the ambassador that his wife had been killed. In his entire career, there were just a few things he had done that were more difficult.

Bail did not think he would ever be able to forget the sound of Sabé's weeping children. Her husband was trying his best to keep himself together for their sake, but the senator could see that it was a losing battle. He asked Bail several times why Sabé was with Typho in the Jedi temple, but there were no answers he could give.

Imperial investigators concluded their investigation and declared that Sabé Komour was somehow involved with Typho and killed him to keep him from revealing certain information. Bail did not think the former handmaiden was involved in the bombing, but what mattered was the Imperial interpretation of events.

Jorran Komour and his children would have to be sent back to Alderaan and a new ambassador would have to be named. Bail and the Organization could not afford the increased Imperial scrutiny.

There were even more difficult days ahead for the Komour family. Bail decided it was best to wait until after Sabé was buried to tell Jorran about his loss of position; but the senator suspected that the grieving widower would be relieved to be able to take his family back to Alderaan.

Bail knew that Sabé's choice to pursue Typho, for whatever reason, would forever haunt her family. Besides the grief of losing one so dear to them, they would forever be under Imperial suspicion. Her children would never be able to attend a government sponsored university, or hold any kind of office. He was fairly certain that Jorran Komour did not approve of the Empire; but until a drastic change happened, it would be very difficult for them to live within it.

Bail had no idea why Sabé had been with Typho on that fateful night, but he hoped the reason was worth the consequences.

The senator had seen so much death. He remembered clearly the night of the Jedi purge when he watched in horror as one of the Padawan learners was gunned down right in front of him. Since then, there had been Typho's terrorist attack, Sabé's death, and now Typho himself killed by one of Bail's own allies.

It was beginning to overwhelm him. "I've sought peace all of my life, but I've never found it." He whispered.

Nol waited for a few moments before responding, "Senator, I will be blunt, if you have any hope of succeeding in your...goals, blood will be spilled, a lot of blood."

"I know that."

"I'm not sure that you do. That is why your group has waited so long to act."

Bail sighed, "It is a dangerous business that I'm in; we must proceed with caution." In a million years, the senator never believed he would be justifying his own actions within the rebel organization to an Imperial officer.

Nol shook his head, "Caution is one thing, but stalling will get everyone connected to you killed."

"Why do you care?"

"I'm trusting my family's life to you and your group. It is in my best interest to make sure it survives."

Bail studied the man before him. In the short time that he had known him, the officer seemed as if he was at war within himself; but now, something had changed. It appeared that Adan Nol had resolved the conflict and made a decision. "Are you offering your services?"

Nol did not flinch, "I am."

"You will fight against the Empire?"

"I will do what it takes to save my family," he promised.

"But if your wife wasn't in danger, you would still serve it." To Bail, that was the crux of the matter. He would never be able to trust him if that was the only reason.

Adan leaned back in his chair and collected his thoughts before proceeding, "I once gave an oath to serve the Republic when I joined the academy during the Clone War. When Palpatine became Emperor, I gave an oath to serve him, not the Empire specifically. I was young and I believed it was the right thing to do; I had no idea what it would mean."

"I graduated and was sent to the outer rim; there I learned what Imperial justice entailed. I did my job though. I learned early the key to survival and sanity was to compartmentalize; it's something I do very well."

Nol paused and refocused his attention on the senator seated before him. "I had these boxes in my mind, one for my work and one for my family. I told myself that I could love them but still do everything I was ordered, no matter how horrific.

"Senator, if you knew some of the things I've done in the name of the Emperor, you would be disgusted. If Rema knew, she would never let me near our son again." With the mention of his wife, Adan's emotional control faltered momentarily.

Bail was silent as the man confessed to him his deepest and darkest secrets. He suspected that this was the first time that he ever voiced such things.

Adan had to fight to suppress his raging emotions before continuing. "When my wife told me about her connection to Typho, those neat little boxes collapsed. My job was no longer separate from my family. I was so angry; I treated the woman that I pledged to love-the mother of my child-as an enemy of the state."

"Did you hurt her?" Bail demanded.

The officer shook his head, "Not physically, but I almost did." He then could no longer stand Bail's stare. He bowed his head, "For a nanosecond, the thought of beating her for information actually crossed my mind, as I've done with countless other prisoners."

The senator knew that all men had a dark side, but to hear the man before him confess it to such detail disturbed him greatly. "What stopped you?"

Nol again met Bail's glare, "Rema believed that my job was changing me like it had other officers, she was right. I know what the Empire is, I've always known but this has forced me to admit it. Senator, I don't want my son growing up to follow in my footsteps; I don't want him to become what I've allowed myself to become. I don't want the galaxy to be ruled by monsters like me."

As he regarded the man before him, it finally dawned on him why Adan had done what he had done. "That is why you are sending them away. This has nothing to do with the threat of your wife's connection with Typho being revealed."

He nodded, "I told myself at the beginning that it was, but it's not. The truth is, it's me that they are not safe around."

"But you are going to help my organization?"

"You will need me. I am to be stationed on Vader's flagship and I'll have information that will be vital when your military campaigns begin. I know you want to avoid fighting at all cost, but that is the only way your organization will succeed. I'm very sorry."

Bail knew that there were many reasons not to trust Adan Nol, but the senator had seen a glimpse of the true man underneath the uniform. The man had bared his soul before him; and in that moment of understanding, the senator knew that Nol would never betray them. "You will give us this information, when it becomes necessary."

"Yes."

"I'm trusting you with a great deal."

"And I'm trusting you with everything I've got."

In the years since the birth of the Empire, Bail Organa had entertained the idea of giving up his seat on the Imperial Senate several times. There were many days in which he could barely stand the double life he was leading. He hated having to pretend to approve of a government when it was against everything he believed in. Even though he was committed to working to defeat the Emperor, there were days when the idea of leaving it all behind and spending the rest of his days on Alderaan with his family had great appeal. Today was one of those days. Bail had been awake for over twenty-four hours. In that time his daughter had been kidnapped by a mass murderer, he made a deal with an Imperial officer, and the wife of his ambassador had been killed.

He wanted Leia off of Coruscant and for a few moments entertained the idea of sending her home in the ship that was to take Adan Nol's wife and child away from the capital, but reason eventually prevailed. The sudden disappearance of the senator's daughter would most likely be noticed by Imperial authorities. Leia was one of the last people to see Typho alive; there was a very good chance that Imperial investigators might question her again. No, despite all the horrors that his precious daughter had experienced in her time here, he still could not let her escape it yet.

It was mid-afternoon when his door-chime rang. He was not terribly surprised by the visitor, in fact he expected it; but that did not lessen his annoyance. He was not in the mood for visitors today and he certainly knew Leia was not as well. Fortunately, she was sleeping at the moment.

Putting on his most convincing smile, Bail opened the door and greeted his guest, "Senator Mothma."

The senator returned his smile and walked into the residence carrying a brightly wrapped package. "How is Leia?"

"It is going to be a long time before she recovers from this. She saw far too much for a child to be able to handle." Other than a small break down when Bail picked her up from Imperial custody after her kidnapping where she wept and begged to go back home to Alderaan, Leia had not spoken any more about her ordeal or shed any more tears. Bail knew she needed to talk about what she experienced; Bail hoped that she would feel more free to do so once she was safely back on Alderaan.

Mon Mothma held up the package she brought, "I have something for her. It's not much, but I thought it might make her smile."

Bail smiled as he took the package-this time it was genuine. "Thank you, I'll give it to her when she wakes up." While he knew no trinket would make Leia forget her experience with Typho and the horror of watching Sabé get shot down by Stormtroopers, the senator was touched by his Rebellion counterpart's thoughtfulness.

"How is Ambassador Komour handling it?"

Bail sighed wearily as he placed Leia's gift on a small table near the entryway, "As well as can be expected." He still could not get the look that Sabé's husband had on his face out of his mind as he learned of what happened. The man was broken.

Senator Mothma shook her head as the pair walked toward one of the residence's sitting areas, "Such a terrible tragedy, all of it. These have been terrible days."

Bail nodded gravely, "I fear the days are going to get more terrible before the end."

"We must hold our course, Bail."

The Senator's attempt to encourage her colleague was poorly timed. "You don't have to tell me, Senator Mothma," Bail snapped. "I know the stakes we are fighting for." For the last eight years he had been the one that rallied the troops. When other members of the Organization lost faith, it was he that was tasked to help restore it. Bail Organa not only provided tactical and operational leadership, he also provided moral support and encouragement. Without him ever asking for such a responsibility, he was seen as a spiritual leader of sorts to the fledgling rebellion.

Today, of all days, he did not need anyone telling him to stay the course. He had given much in the name of fighting the Empire, and he had a sick feeling he would give much more. However, that was not what was causing him such despair. Bail could not get the look his daughter had in her eyes when he picked her up from Station One out of his mind. There was fear, despair, anger, and weariness evident on Leia's face. She had seen such horror-horror that no one should have to experience, let alone a child.

It was there, while he was holding Leia trying in vain to comfort her, that he realized a cold and bitter truth: If he continues down the road set before him, his daughter would suffer much more. The senator had no illusions that their fight to restore the Republic would be won in a short time. Palpatine had schemed for decades to turn democracy into an absolute dictatorship. Bail even had additional knowledge that no other rebellion Senator was privy to, the Emperor was an expert wielder of the Dark Side of the Force-so powerful that even the Jedi's greatest master could not defeat him. The Senator knew with bitter certainty that their fight would last many years. Leia, his sweet and innocent child, would know the horror of war.

Surprised by her colleague's sudden outburst, Mon Mothma tried to smooth things over. "I didn't mean to…"

Bail help up his hand to stop her, "I know, I've just had a very long night."

Mon nodded sympathetically, "You need to rest."

Bail sighed, he knew this was not really the right time to discuss what he had been considering since he spoke to Adan Nol earlier, but he could no longer delay. "That's the last thing I need to do. Mon, we need to step things up. It's time to start doing the things we've been putting off."

"You've always urged caution," Mon gently reminded him.

"Yes, but we didn't go into this to be cautious. If we continue at the pace we've been going, our great-grandchildren will still be under the Empire's rule." Despite his hatred of military conflicts and the grave certainty he had that his family would eventually be dragged into the rebellion he helped create, Bail knew that it was the only way the Emperor could ever be defeated. "It is bad enough one generation has to grow up under it, I will not doom another by my inaction."

Senator Mothma nodded, "I agree, there will be many others in the Organization who will welcome this."

Bail knew of those she was speaking of. There was a faction of Senators within the Organization who were constantly trying to push the rebels into adopting a militaristic stance. Many of them were unhappy and frustrated with having a pacifist in the upper echelons of Organization leadership, but so far they had not made any major moves to have the senator from Alderaan removed from that position. "I'm sure there will be. I don't want a war, I really don't, but the Empire will not be defeated any other way."

Bail had always suspected that the senator from Chandrila was at times frustrated by her colleague's caution, but she never expressed it to him. She did not have to; the smile of triumph and relief on her face at Organa's concessions that a military solution is necessary said it all. "So, we need to increase funding for ships and weaponry."

"Yes, and we need to recruit more to our banner. We need more than just politicians."

"I think it's time we start thinking about meeting with the other dissident groups to see if we can all come under a common banner."

Bail sighed, "Like _Soldiers of the Republic_?" He did not want to work with this group. Even though he had assurances from Mon Mothma that they had no idea what Typho was really planning, he still was not completely convinced. He had thought long and hard about bringing groups like theirs into the fold and had weighed the pros and cons. After much internal wrangling, Bail realized that the small dissident groups needed to be brought in to the fold, if only to keep some of the more reactive beings in check.

Mon nodded, "Yes, they want a meeting."

"Schedule one, but not on Coruscant. We need to wait until the blockade is over." While Bail knew that getting all the groups that distained the Empire to fight under one banner was going to be very difficult, he knew the absolute necessity of it. A group of politicians, no matter how many credits they had access to, could not put together an army on their own that would challenge the might of the Imperial military. They needed each other, and Bail would have to be at his rhetorical best to convince them of that.

"I heard a rumor that the military is going to end it very soon, since they believe they found the one responsible for the bombing. They've already decreased the stormtrooper patrols. I head Lord Vader's flagship is due to leave soon as well."

Bail had heard the same rumor; if the information he received was correct, the travel restrictions would be lifted in just a few weeks. "But the other measures the Empire put in place will not be rescinded. This tragedy has given the Emperor the excuse he needed to clamp down like never before."

"And what began on Coruscant will eventually be brought to the rest of the Empire. Eventually, he will remove all the last vestiges of democracy."

Bail nodded, "But the more the Empire tightens his grip, the more planets will slip through his fingers."


	29. Chapter 28

_**Chapter 28: **_

Major Nol had been in many dangerous situations during his military career. He had faced Separatists' battle-droids, Black Sun raiders, Hutt crime lords, and more recently had been Darth Vader's immediate subordinate-a position not many officers survived. Of all the times in his life when he was in dangerous situations, he had never been more afraid than he was now.

He had, in the last several days, concealed evidence of treason within the Imperial Senate, teamed up with one who was working against the Empire he serves, and even agreed to join in the conspiracy. He was a traitor to those he served with. If he was discovered, he would be an object of contempt and hatred to the very men that he commanded-the men who looked up to him as an example.

Adan had wrestled with his new assignment as a rebel spy every since he volunteered for it. He made a promise to Bail Organa that he would send information helpful to his organization when the military campaigns began. The Imperial soldier in him screamed from within him that he was a disgrace, and he deserved nothing but the worst death imaginable for his treason. The rational side of Adan would not stop reminding him that the Empire would most likely discover his activities very quick, especially now that he was assigned to Lord Vader's ship. However, the husband and father in him had won the battle. He could not sit by and do nothing while his wife and son lived under the dictatorship that he swore to serve.

He gave a new oath, to an organization that was fighting against everything he had once believed in. In return, that organization would shelter his family and make certain they were provided for. The price he would pay for this agreement was living a dual life that Adan knew would eventually destroy him. He would either be caught, or go insane. He just hoped that he could do some good before either or those things happened. He owed it to his family.

"Daddy, where are we going?" Tomas asked again. Adan's four-year-old son had not stopped questioning him since he was told that they would be leaving Imperial Center. The child was not happy to be leaving the only home he ever had, but Adan had helped calm his fears by telling him that it would be a great adventure. However, it did not stop the child's questions.

"You and Mommy are going on a trip." It was the same answer Adan had been giving during the long speeder ride to the rarely used commercial landing pad near the Works where they would board a ship provided by Senator Organa.

"Where?" Tomas asked again.

Adan sighed, it was getting more and more difficult to fake enthusiasm to keep his son's spirits high; his fears were too great. He had so much to lose. "To a new planet, you'll love it."

Tomas was still not convinced. "Why can't you go with us?"

Adan felt another pang of grief. There was nothing he would have loved more than to run away with his wife and son and start over far from the Empire; but he had promises to keep. His family would not be safe while he was around. "I have to stay here, son; but you will have a lot of fun with your mother." Glancing to his side, Adan saw Rema staring straight ahead with little emotion evident. She had said nothing to him while they were getting packed and had even said very little to Tomas. "I have to work, I'm so sorry."

The speeder finally arrived. Nol was not surprised to see the ship that Bail Organa had promised was already there waiting for them. From the short time that they had spent together, Adan knew that the senator was a trustworthy man.

As the family exited the speeder and walked toward the ship, he could see many workers loading cargo on the ship, but he did not see Organa himself. It was decided that it would not be wise to tell his wife of the organization until the time was right. Adan wondered if his wife would eventually join the cause—somehow he knew she would. That was the kind of woman she was. He prayed to whatever god would listen to him that, when she joined them, she would be kept far away from Lord Vader…and him.

"I don't want to go." Tomas tearfully implored. It was no longer an adventure for him. He just wanted to go home.

Adan bent down to meet his son at eye level. "You have to, don't worry, you will love it." The lies were growing more difficult to utter, but he could not tell Tomas, or Rema, the truth. Nol looked up to see his wife standing behind the boy. He could see tears welling up in her eyes, but he knew she was fighting them for the sake of their son.

He then pulled the boy into a hug. "I'm going to miss you so much." He wanted to say so much more to him. He wanted to tell him his reasons for leaving. He wanted the boy to know that he was not being abandoned; but he was doing this so they would be safe. He wanted him to know that he was fighting for their future; but Adan knew the boy would not understand. He hoped that someday the boy would know why he had to leave them. Until then, he could only convey his feelings in a few words.

"I love you son, don't ever forget that. Be brave, everything will be all right." Nol hoped that would not turn out to be another lie.

The boy broke from the hug to look at his father's face. He smiled, "It won't be long, Daddy."

Adan saw that the workers had completed loading their cargo; the ship would be leaving soon. He wanted more time with his wife and son, but he knew he had to let them go. The longer the ship remained in that location, the more risky it was. He had timed the ship's takeoff to occur when the automatic security drones would not be flying over the area. Besides, having another hour or month with them would not make saying goodbye any easier. Nol pointed to the ship's gangplank. "Tomas, you go get on the ship, someone inside will tell you where to sit."

Tomas hesitated for just a few seconds before doing what he was told. It was not until the child was out of earshot that Rema broke her silence. "How is this ship going to get through the blockade?"

Ever since the bombing, Imperial Center had been placed under lockdown. Only military ships and Empire approved cargo and passenger vessels were allowed to enter or leave the planet's atmosphere. "I have the codes to get past it." Being an Imperial officer did have its advantages. "As far as the Empire is concerned, this ship is a supply freighter headed toward the Outer-Rim."

"What planet are we going to?"

Adan shook his head, "It's best I don't know...for now." He added. "My contact tells me that it is safe." He smiled hoping to calm her fears, at least somewhat.

"You trust him?" She asked.

"Yes, I do."

Rema did not appear to be convinced, but decided to move on. "You said that you will come for us when it is safe. When will that be?"

"I don't know." Adan looked away, he could no longer stand lying to her while looking her in the eyes.

"Is it ever going to be safe?" She asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

"Rema, there are a lot of variables to consider." He began. "Don't worry, I will let you know as soon as..."

"Please stop," she begged. The tears that she had been fighting since she was told of this plan began to pour down her cheeks. "Adan Nol, look me in the eye and tell me that you'll see us again."

Reluctantly, Adan turned to face her again. He knew what he had to do, but he did not think he could. He would have rather faced one of Darth Vader's interrogations than have to look into the eyes of his beloved and lie to her again. "I promise you, I will come for you as soon as it is safe. It won't be long." He knew the truth, as long as the Empire existed, it would never be safe.

Rema nodded, "I will hold you to that promise."

Adan then took his wife into his arms. He did not have much time. He held her for several moments. Finally, the alert on his wrist chrono sounded. The ship needed to leave within ten minutes before a security drone flew over the area. He reluctantly let her go. "The ship is taking off any moment; you need to get on board."

After giving Rema one last kiss, Adan led her to the gangplank. "I love you."

"I love you." Reluctantly, she walked up the gangplank. When she was at the door she turned around one last time. "I'll see you soon."

After she disappeared into the ship, Nol sent a message telling the pilot to take off. He refused to cry as he watched the ship get smaller and smaller. He could no longer afford tears. He had a job to do; tears were a luxury he could no longer afford.

A voice then emerged from the shadows. "You lied to her."

Nol sighed, "Senator, what could I have said to make this better?"

Bail Organa then walked up and stood beside him. "You owed her the truth." There was very little accusation in his voice, just sadness.

"What's done is done." Adan knew he had to bury his regrets, if only for the sake of his sanity. He turned to his unlikely ally. "Just make sure they are safe."

Bail nodded. "I will keep my end of the bargain, as you kept yours."

"Don't take them to Alderaan. It will be too easy for the Empire to find them if something happens."

"I wasn't planning on it. Are you certain that you don't want to know their location?" Asked the Senator.

"Very certain." He had never been more certain of anything in his life. If his treason was ever discovered, they would be used as leverage in an interrogation. It was common for the families of certain high-value criminals to be brought in and interrogated to either gain information, or as a tool to force the prisoner to surrender or talk to keep their families from experiencing the torture. Major Nol himself had ordered it to be done in certain cases.

Usually, such leverage worked and made the prisoner reveal what he knew; but not always. The screams of agony of the twelve-year-old daughter of a high-level Black Sun operative still haunted his dreams.

"When do you take your new post on Vader's flagship?"

"In three days." Adan knew that a man such as Lord Vader was anxious to get back on his ship to dispense his particular version of Imperial justice all over the galaxy. It was Nol's official assignment to make certain that happened to Vader's satisfaction. "How long will it be before I am contacted by someone in your group?"

"It could be a week and it could be months, but be prepared for it."

Adan nodded, "I will be ready Senator."

* * *

Nearly three months after the bombing that claimed the life of nearly one hundred thousand Imperial citizens, Imperial investigators issued a statement with the findings into the attack. Typho, along the dissident group, _Soldiers of the Republic_ were formally charged with the crimes of treason and mass murder. Even though Typho was dead, charges were still brought against him as per Imperial regulation and an official manhunt began for all known members of _Soldiers of the Republic_ and any sympathizers. Since the charges were filed, ten known associates of the group were rounded up and executed; but their leaders were still at large.

Just weeks after Typho's death, regulations that had been in place since the bombing were lifted and ships were allowed relatively unrestricted travel to and from Coruscant. However, the other draconian regulations that were put in place after the bombing had yet to be rescinded. They had even been extended to include other Imperial planets. More and more freedoms were being taken away on a daily basis and there was no end in sight.

Bail Organa wanted to take his daughter back home to Alderaan as soon as the restrictions were lifted, but since Leia was one of the last beings to see Typho alive, the investigators strongly suggested that it would be in his and his daughter's best interests if Bail waited until the investigation was closed before taking her off world. It pained him very much to not be able to take Leia home to where she belonged, but Bail did not want any more attention from Imperial authorities.

For the most part, Leia took the delay well; but she asked nearly every morning if today was the day she was finally free to go home. Bail could see clearly that her continued presence on the capital was taking a toll and he was heartbroken to see it; but was powerless to do anything about it.

Finally, the day came when the investigation was closed and he was finally free to take her back where she belonged. There was only one last task the Senator needed to take care of before he and Leia could leave for Alderaan.

Since the night that he and Major Nol formed an unlikely partnership, Bail had been haunted by the man's accusation that one of the members of his staff was secretly working against him; and in doing that opened a large hole in their security system that allowed Nol to discover Bail's secret activities against the Emperor. If the major had not needed him to protect his wife, those activities would have been discovered and the entire organization would have collapsed; and many would have been executed as traitors.

Bail was thankful that this information had been stopped from reaching Imperial Intelligence, but it sickened him to think that someone on his own staff was working against him. The morning after Leia was returned to him, the senator began a secret investigation to discover the mole. It took him nearly a month to determine his identity.

At three minutes prior to 0800, Bail was interrupted by a comm. From one of the consulate staff. "Senator Organa, Lieutenant Sobrel is here to see you."

Bail sighed, "Let him in."

Within a few moments the man who had been in charge of Leia's protection, the family's most trusted bodyguard, entered the office. "You sent for me sir?"

"Sit down." Bail commanded.

Sobrel quickly did as he was told; but his confusion was apparent. "Senator, with all do respect, shouldn't I be preparing security for the princess' departure? The ship leaves in just a few hours."

Bail felt his heart constrict with the mention of his daughter. "No, you will not be returning to Alderaan with us-at least not in the same capacity."

The Lieutenant was visibly shaken by Bail's stern tone. "I do not understand."

"You are not going anywhere near my daughter again." The senator spit out with contempt. His normally calm and collected demeanor was gone.

Sobrel shook his head. "Senator, I..."

Bail stood up from his desk and towered over the man before him. "Did you not think I would find out?" He shouted. "Granted, it took me a while, mainly because I never believed that the man that I trusted to keep my daughter secure was a traitor."

The man's eyes widened momentarily before he schooled his features. "Please, I..."

The senator put up his hand to silence the man. "Don't try to deny it, Sobrel, I have all the evidence of your activities right here: the slicing, the spying, and your association with Moff Tarkin. I've been gathering it for the past few weeks." Bail tossed a datapad at the man. "See for yourself."

Sobrel picked up the pad and reviewed the contents. As he read, the fear in his eyes was replaced by resignation. He placed the pad on the desk and sighed with what sounded, to Bail, almost like relief. "I don't know what to say Senator. I'm glad for your sake that you are finally taking security more seriously."

It was all Bail could do to not punch the man. It was getting more and more difficult to remember that he was supposed to be a pacifist. "Why did you do this?"

Sobrel shrugged, "I needed the money."

Bail was even more enraged. "That's it? It was all about credits?" If Sobrel's motivation was because he truly wanted to help the Empire catch a traitor, the senator would have been angry; but at least the Lieutenant's reason for doing this would have been for something greater than himself. It was more of an insult that his motivations were purely monetary.

"Yes, Tarkin was offering a great deal of credits for information concerning your activities." Sobrel answered with little emotion.

"What activities?"

"The treasonous kind. It is no secret that you do not approve of the Emperor's government, especially among those in the consulate." Said Sobrel. "Moff Tarkin believes that you have gone beyond idealism."

A surge of fear went through Bail. "You never found anything." He prayed that was the truth. If Sobrel knew anything about his actions against the Empire, he could still get that information to Imperial authorities, even from a prison cell on Alderaan.

The Lieutenant shook his head. "No, but you probably won't be as lucky the next time the Empire decides to take a look into your personal affairs. I would be preparing for that day, Senator, if I were you."

Bail nearly sighed in relief, the organization was safe-at least for now. He pressed a button on his desk and two guards came in at the pre-arranged signal. "Take him away."

* * *

Bail Organa had never been so happy to see Alderaan from orbit. It had had been so long since he had left his world with his daughter on what was supposed to be just a week-long trip. Now they were finally home after over three months on the capital.

Leia walked up to her father as soon as the ship began its landing procedure. "I'm so happy to be home; I miss Mother so much."

Bail looked down to see a child that appeared much older than the one he took to Coruscant. When they left, Leia was a carefree little girl. She was still a child, but Bail could see that she was far from carefree. He could not deny that the horrors that she had seen had changed her. She walked, talked, and carried herself much differently-much more grown up.

"Me too." Bail said with a smile that he hoped covered his anxieties.

Bail hated to think that Leia had to grow up so fast, but he sadly conceded that, given the current state of the galaxy, she really had no other choice. The daughter of a political revolutionary does not have the luxury of a long childhood.

Leia remained quiet for a few moments as she watched the approach to Aldera palace. Her father could tell that she wanted to talk, but he did not want to press her. Finally, she spoke. "Do you think it'll be possible for us to visit Sabé's grave?"

Bail was somewhat surprised by the request. He knew that Leia had grown very close to the former handmaiden and took her death very hard; but she had not spoken about it at all. There was much about that horrible night when she was held captive that his daughter had yet to speak of, despite his efforts. "I'm sure it's something that can be arranged."

Leia frowned, "I still don't understand why she did all of that to protect me."

"We will never know all of the reasons, but I'm glad she was there for you." The Senator had wondered that himself. When Sabé Komour first met his daughter, she seemed to immediately take to her and Leia to her. Sabé's former position as Padmé Amidala's handmaiden made Bail very nervous. He wondered if Sabé suspected who Leia's biological mother truly was.

"Father," She began. "Typho was going to tell Lord Vader something-something about me. Sabé told him not to but he refused. I think that's why she shot him."

Surprised, Bail immediately knelt down on one knee to be at Leia's eye level. "What did he say?" This was the first time that she had spoke about her experiences with Typho, let alone said that Sabé and him had mentioned Vader. A shot of terror coursed through the Senator. _By the gods, did Typho know? Did they both know?_

"He said that if Lord Vader knew who I really was that he would be more careful." Leia answered, seemingly confused by what she had heard. "I don't understand why he would say that."

Bail scrambled for a suitable response. "It must be because you are a princess." He felt sick at the idea that Typho, or even Sabé, might have figured out the secret that he was most desperate to keep. Of course, there was a possibility that Typho was only speaking of her status as High Princess of Alderaan, but deep in his heart Bail knew that was a very low probability. He suddenly felt sick. _If they figured it out. How difficult would it be for Vader or the Emperor to do the same?_

He was then struck with the realization that by Adan Nol killing Typho, he did more than protect his wife from being implicated in the bombing, he might have inadvertently kept Leia out of the hands of her Sith Lord father. _If Typho told Vader, I would have lost her forever._

Leia was not convinced, "I don't think so; Lord Vader knows that I'm a princess. It's something else. I have to know." She then looked her father straight in the eye with such intensity that it took him by surprise. "What does Vader have to do with me?"

"Absolutely nothing!" Bail nearly shouted. Of all questions his daughter could ask him, this one terrified him the most. _What if she finds out someday? What would that do to her?_

Undaunted by her father's sudden ferocity, Leia continued her questions. "Then why did Sabé shoot Typho to get him to stop talking?"

Bail wished that the ship would go ahead and land. He did not want to be having this conversation-not now, not ever. "There is much that we will never know. Just put it out of your mind."

Leia sighed, "I can't do that."

In that moment, Bail could see Padmé Amidala clearly in the eyes of the child before him. His murdered friend would not have given up trying to solve this riddle, and neither would her daughter. He had nothing that he could say that would address these burning questions to her satisfaction so he opted to say very little. "Leia, I don't have the answers you seek. I am sorry."

For a moment, Leia continued to stare at her adopted father. To Bail, it seemed like she was trying to determine if he was telling the truth. Without a word, she turned away from her father and looked out the window of the ship. They could see Aldera Palace below them. For a few minutes, father and daughter watched as the ship got closer to the Royal spaceport. Bail could see that much was still on Leia's mind. He knew enough about his daughter to know that she was not finished with the conversation.

Finally, she turned back to him. "Father, when I was in the temple, I saw..." Leia stopped as the memories washed over her.

"What did you see?" A lump formed in the Senator's throat as he watched his daughter recollect what she had witnessed. He wished with all of his being that she did not have to carry the burden of such memories.

Tears began to form in the girl's eyes. "I saw skeletons; Typho told me that they were Jedi and Vader killed them."

_By the gods, she saw their bodies!_ The idea that Palpatine left the bodies of the murdered Jedi in the temple to rot had never entered even Bail's darkest imagination until he saw them lying on the floor of the temple during his and Adan Nol's unsuccessful attempt to get to Typho before the Empire did. Other than being an insult to the Jedi, it was beneath all forms of human dignity to leave the dead in such a manner. In the back of his mind, he knew that he should not have been surprised by the actions of a Sith Lord who was responsible for the death of millions, but he was taken aback by the sheer barbarity of it.

Bail now understood why Leia could barely talk about what occurred in those dark hours while she was Typho's prisoner. When he saw the skeletons of the Jedi lying forgotten in the temple he prayed that Leia was in an area that had no bodies and would be spared such a horrific sight—but she was not. He did not have any words of comfort for her. There was nothing he could say that would make those memories go away.

The tears that were in Leia's eyes had yet to fall. Bail was amazed by her strength. Any other child would have been balling as she told of her experiences. "When I asked Lord Vader about it, he told me that traitors must be eliminated."

"You spoke to Vader about this?" Bail asked in surprise.

The girl nodded, "Yes, when he questioned me after Typho was captured."

As far as he knew, Leia was the only one, save for Obi-Wan Kenobi himself, who had ever confronted Vader about his horrific deeds on the night he fell to the dark side. Bail could not help but smile at his daughter's boldness. Anyone else, him included, would have remained silent. "You are brave, I will give you that."

Ignoring her father's admiration, Leia continued. "Many of them were kids. How could he do such a thing?"

She had spoken the same question that Bail himself had wrestled with for eight years. Every time he saw Vader or the Jedi Temple, he could not fathom how a Jedi could fall so far. He wondered how Anakin Skywalker justified the cold blooded murder of his brother and sister Jedi, and the younglings, in the name of power. He had no answers for his daughter. "Lord Vader is a man of many sins. I'm so sorry you had to see that."

"Does the Emperor know what he did?" Asked Leia as the ship finally touched down.

Logic told Bail that he should not answer her question. He did not want to burden her with such knowledge, but as he looked into the eyes that were so much like his dearly departed friend, he knew that he could not lie to her. Padmé Amidala's daughter deserved to know the truth. "Leia, you are not to speak of this to anyone but me or your mother; but the Emperor ordered it done."

A look of anguished surprised crossed the girl's face. "Why?"

This was one question that Bail knew the answer to. "The Jedi were a threat to his power. They were the only ones who could have stopped him taking full control over the Republic."

Leia straightened her posture and seemed to grow inches taller. Gone were all vestiges of tears. Bail could see anger and outrage written across her face. "He is just as guilty as Vader." She declared.

Bail nodded, "Yes, he is."

"You are a senator, how can you do that knowing what the Emperor did? How can you be a part of a government like this?" Leia demanded with forcefulness that the he had never seen from her before. She reminded him so much of Senator Amidala as she addressed the Senate as a young queen demanding justice against the Trade Federation that had invaded her planet.

Placing her small hands in his, Bail answered his daughter the best he could. "To protect Alderaan. Leia, there is a time to wait in silence, but there is also a time to stand up for what is right. We have not entered that season yet."

"Father, when the time for standing up comes, I will be with you and anyone else who will stand with us," Leia vowed without any traces of hesitation.

The lump in Bail's throat returned as he thought about the future that his precious daughter had in store. He wished with everything that was in him that she did not have to grow up in such a galaxy, but she did not get that luxury. Even though he knew what awaited her, the Senator was filled with hope. The battle ahead of them would be difficult and would most likely last decades. The next generation who would be instrumental in battling the Empire would have a leader in his young daughter when she came of age. "I know you will." It was time to prepare her for that role, they had much to do.

_**Epilogue...Eleven Years Later:**_

Adan Nol was a good officer-an excellent leader, motivator, and always got the job done with speed and efficiency. On Lord Vader's flagship, he was one of the few officers that it could be said that the second-in-command of the Empire was impressed with.

During action engagements, there was no one, save Vader himself, who was more calm and collected during battle. His men even referred to him as _"the stone"_ behind his back.

It was rumored that he once had a family, but his wife left him many years ago. It was almost impossible for them to imagine him having children. The consensus among those he commanded was that his family, if they even existed, was far better off without him.

What no one knew, not his shipmates and certainly not Vader, was that Adan Nol was a man with many secrets, and those secrets had forced him to become the man that he was. He was ruthless and cold because that was what was expected of him; it was what was required.

It had been many years since he had seen Rema and Tomas. The last time was when they climbed the gangplank of the freighter that Senator Organa arranged so many years ago. He remembered how he promised his beloved that he would see her soon once things were safer. What he did not tell her was that he knew that day would never come. He knew because of the road he decided to travel, there would never be a time when it would be safe to be with the ones he loved.

There was never a day that went by that he did not think about his far away loved ones. Occasionally he received information from his Alliance contacts regarding his family. He was never told much—only a general report of their welfare.

Four years after he sent them away from Imperial Center, Rema was granted a divorce from her absent husband and had since remarried. While he was very angry about it when he first heard the news, Adan eventually realized that it was for the best. It was unfair for her to have to be alone for the rest of her life. He never learned the name of her new husband, but he was assured that he was a good man. He suspected that he and Rema were both members of the Rebel Alliance.

Adan always wondered if Rema ever forgave him for sending them away from him. He hoped that she did.

His son was now fifteen, and by all-accounts was a good boy who was counting the days until he could enlist with the Rebel Alliance. Nol found it ironic that his son was drawn to the soldier's life as he was, but on diametrically opposed sides. He did not worry that there would come a day when he would have to face his own son in battle, mainly because Adan knew that he would not be in the service of the Emperor much longer. His days as a soldier were quickly coming to an end.

What no one else, but a very select group, knew was that for several years Nol had been feeding the Rebel Alliance information regarding Imperial troop movement and long-range plans-plans that the now General Nol had a hand in creating.

He was careful to not release so much as to be discovered. While the higher up military brass held many briefings to figure out where the leaks came from, they never suspected that the man sitting next to them was the culprit. They arrogantly believed that their inner circle could not be breached.

Adan was painfully aware, however, that the luck that had kept him alive for so many years was about to run out. The plans he was going to transmit were too classified to not be traced. He had one chance alone to help the Rebellion that he had vowed to serve all those years ago-once chance to save his family from certain death.

He had learned of the Death Star and its destructive capability years before; and the Alliance had been tirelessly working to piece together the complete technical readout of the enormous station since that time. Now, he alone had access to the final piece of the puzzle.

On the third day of an otherwise uneventful week, Adan Nol committed his final treason against the Empire. With one push of a button, he transmitted the last section of the Death Star's plans which would give the Rebels a chance to defeat the Empire's ultimate weapon. It did not take long for the source of the breach to be identified. Vader himself led a squadron of stormtroopers to the quarters of the one officer the Sith never imagined would betray him.

But he never had the chance to confront the man. When the doors to his quarters were opened, only the body of Adan Nol was found. It would later be determined that he had taken his own life by injecting himself with a powerful toxin.

In the darkness of Nol's quarters, Vader did notice something very curious. Prying the cold hand open he discovered that his once most loyal officer had died clutching two objects-a strip of cloth bearing the insignia of the Rebel Alliance and a wedding ring.

_**The End**_


End file.
